Saint Bernard's Mystery
by Sheis1963
Summary: House and Cuddy go to her High School reunion and things take an unexpected turn, will our favorite couple be able to get themselves out of trouble? A mix of drama, comedy, mystery, murder and romance all in the same fic. M for chapter 9. [on hold for now]
1. Chapter 1

Uhm... hi.

I know I haven't written anything in a while, and I know I had promised a new story after "Chill Factor" but life hasn't been that great for me, so I kinda gave up on writing. I'M BACK NOW THOUGH, ISN'T THAT EXCITING? /cricket sounds

yeah... umh... anyway... this is my first multi-chaptered fic :) It's a mix of mystery, drama, comedy, romance, suspense etc. etc. The first chapters are a bit dull and cliché, I guess, but bear with me, please :3

A gigantic thank you to everyone who added my stories to their favs and took their time to review, I'm totally cyber kissing you right now ;P

Enjoy!

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><p>The walk from the car to Cuddy's front door had been like sightseeing in Mount Everest, there was a thick layer of snow making the usually cushy path seem like an endless journey to infinitive, the white flakes were coming from everywhere and the possibility of not falling on your ass was zero to none. As they walked in the house, both freezing cold and starving, House and Cuddy couldn't help but to laugh at the image of the two of them trying to win the fight against Nature just a few seconds before.<p>

"Oh my God! My hair is a disaster!" Cuddy, still laughing uncontrollably, looked at her reflection in the mirror, her black curls were messy and dappled with little white flakes all over, making the half an hour she'd spent that morning with the straightening iron, in front of the bathroom mirror, seem a complete waste of time.

"Look at your hair? Look at my clothes, I'm drenched!" House was also having a hard time controlling his laugh, he indeed was the one who looked hilariously worse, but that was only because he'd served as a human shield for Cuddy, her petit body had been protected by his athletic figure during their arduous adventure "I'm so not going to work tomorrow!" House said has he discarded the thick layers of wet clothes sticking to his skin.

"As much as it pains me to say, I think you're right." she knew if the snow kept falling like that, there would be no way she could get out of the house tomorrow "This storm doesn't look like it'll slow down any time soon".

House grinned - "You say that like it's a bad thing" - slowly approaching Cuddy, who was looking out through the window, and put his harms around her waist - "Trust me, Cuddles, playing hooky with me can be a very interesting activity..." he had a slight mischievous tone in his voice, the kind she knew would be followed by a very stupid idea.

"Oh, you don't say..." - Cuddy turned to face him - "And what kind of thing do you have in mind?" she seductively whispered as she slowly pecked his lips, placing her hand around his waist too.

He smiled. He loved when she flirted along with him, one of main reasons he was attracted to her was her ability to challenge him, never backing down when he was playing his games with her.

"There's at least one thing I can think of" - he nuzzled her neck - "In fact, we could do it right now" he leaned in to kiss her but she moved away from him.

"You wish" - she grinned as she made her way round him - "I'm going to take a long, hot shower. I need to get out of this suit and put on some comfy clothes".

"And by comfy clothes you mean my giant Michigan hoodie and your yoga pants" - he pouted - "What happened to lacy lingerie and crotchless panties? You're no fun!" House whined.

"Stop complaining and make us some dinner" Cuddy shouted from the other room, smiling at House's behavior. She loved his sense of humor.

"Pshh... no crotchless panties and I still have to make dinner! You're an evil, evil woman Cuddy!"

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><p>As usual, House had gotten ready before Cuddy and was now in the middle of very difficult decision: Italian or Spanish for dinner? It was funny how this kind of "problems" were becoming very recurrent in his life, before he couldn't care less about what kind of food he'd eat, he was ruled by the concept of 'if it's not green or smelly, eat it' but now he actually spent time cooking, and not only heating stuff in the microwave; He had someone to impress with his cuisine skills and that made him... less miserable.<p>

As he made his way to Cuddy's meticulously organized kitchen, House couldn't help but to notice a rather peculiar looking envelope that was put in between Cuddy's books, almost looking like it wasn't meant to be found by anyone, especially not by him. Naturally, he took it and read it.

"Ooh... interesting..."

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><p>Cuddy was feeling relaxed for the first time that week, the water from the shower seemed to have washed away the heavy cloud of stress that had been stubbornly wrapped around her body. The rare feeling of relaxation was intensified by the comfort provided by her favorite baggy sweater and her grey yoga pants. Peace, finally.<p>

House was sitting on the sofa, arms stretched, wearing the most mischievous smirk on his face.

"What have you done?" She leaned on the door frame, arms crossed above her abdomen, looking defiantly at him.

He starred sheepishly at her and his grin intensified, something that made Cuddy shiver with anticipation. He said nothing.

She sighed "Really, House?"

"Did you really think you could hide this from me?" He finally asked with a mock tone in his voice.

She furrowed her eyebrows "What the hell are you talking about? I'm not hiding anything from you."

"Oh, really, Cuddles..."

_"Crap.."_

It took her a microsecond to realize what he was talking about, but still, she kept her best poker face and went on with her façade.

House looked at her eyes, reading her like an open book, he knew he'd busted her!

"You actually thought you could get away with it... cute." There was that annoying smirk again.

She sighed once more. Damn it, she had managed to hide the damned thing for two weeks, and now, just a couple of days from doom, he'd found out. Sometimes she hated dating a genius.

She sat down next to House, still keeping the best poker face she could muster. He looked at her and spoke, as he held up envelope's contents.

"St. Bernard's High School is glad to announce the Class of 89's reunion...- I can go on if you want me to"

_Ugh, his stupid smirk!_

"Oh, that's what you're talking about" - there was no way she was going to give in that easily - "I completely forgot about that."

"Oh Cuddy! You purposely hid the envelope so I wouldn't find it and you know it. You just forget that you're dating a, not only ruggedly handsome diagnostician, but a high trained snooper. I've lived with Wilson.. you should have known better."

_Crap!_

Cuddy met his stare and finally, to House's amusement, dropped her act.

"Okay fine! I hid it on purpose"

She didn't know it was possible, but his grin intensified and she could swear he was on a verse of a full hearted laugh.

"That wasn't so hard, now was it?"

_Ugh.._

"Shut up."

He put his arm around her shoulders and brought her closer to him - "C'mon Cuddy! You have to admit this situation is hilarious" - he gave her his most sweet, yet mocking, smile.

"House. I'm not going! And this is exactly why I hid this from you, I knew you'd have a blast mocking me and I just thought I could avoid the whole thing"

She was really not amused, and this only made him enjoy her struggle even more.

"Oh, but you're going..." He stated with glee as he rose from the couch "I already confirmed our presence - Mrs. Rogers is really nice, by the way, I wish I had her as my English teacher, you should have seen mine, he-"

"House! You had no right!"

Okay, she was getting a little worked out over this.

"I don't understand why you wouldn't want to go, Cuddy, really.."

"I just.." she hesitated.

"Look at you!" - House was now sitting on the coffee table in front of her - "You are a successful business woman/doctor that accomplished all her life goals.. you have a huge house, a beautiful daughter, according to Wilson, and a world renown Diagnostician as a boyfriend, why wouldn't you want to rub all of this on people's faces? It's like a dream come true"

Cuddy was stunned.

"House, you might find this hard to believe but I'm not actually proud of what I did or how I looked in high school... and going there, seeing all those people, will only remind me of that time."

There was no use in lying now, especially not to House. There was a reason Lisa Cuddy never mentioned her teenage years to anyone, and the last thing she needed was House knowing all the juicy plotline from her time at St. Bernard's

"Pff! Who cares? All I know is that once those people see that smokin' hot bod of yours all you were or did won't make that big difference."

She smiled at him. He was an annoying jerk at times but he could be really sweet behind closed doors, in his own way, of course.

Cuddy sighed again. And he knew he'd won.

"You have to promise me you won't make fun of me and that you'll behave nicely" She spoke in her best administrator voice with her index finger pointed at him.

"Cross my heart and hope to die" He smirked as he opened his arms, inviting her for a hug.

She laughed - "I hate you sometimes".

"I know"

Cuddy went from the couch to House's lap and accepted his peace-hug offer.

After a couple of seconds embraced in each other, they were interrupted by House's stomach making a rumbling noise.

"Someone's hungry..." - Cuddy teased.

House scoffed "Well, someone, who shall remain anonymous, takes hours to get ready which results in myself starving to death and the attempt of aforementioned person of hiding stuff from me, made me forget to order dinner."

"Aww, poor baby" She kissed his nose "How about I make us some tortilla?"

"I'd like that"

**To be continued?**

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><p><strong>AN: **I want to make the reading of this fic a little more interesting for the readers, how do you feel about a game? Don't worry, I'm not a creepy dude with circles on his cheeks XD I'm thinking more of a guessing kind of game. There will be a clue at the end of each chapter to something I want you to guess, it can be either a world, a topic, a song title.. doesn't matter... You'll have to tell me in the comments your answer and the first person getting it right gets 3 points, second gets 2 and third gets 1. The username (anons count too, just make sure you use the same nickname in each participation) that gets the highest score at the end of this fic wins. There's a prize too ;)

Sounds like fun, no? Just let me know what you think :)


	2. Chapter 2

First of all, thanks a bunch to everybody that reviewed the last chapter! Your reviews made me all warm and fuzzy inside :3

I'm not happy with this chapter.. It's a filler chapter and yes, I hate writing filler chapters as much as I hate reading them but, bear with me, this one was necessary, I swear!

House is a little too mushy for my liking too.. yeah.

cookies for reviewers!

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><p>Much to Cuddy's dismay, the week flew by without her noticing and the day she'd been dreading since she got that envelope was just a couple a days away.<p>

"Hey Cuddy! Cuddy! Cuddy! Cuddleeeeees...!"

Both House and Cuddy were running frenetically around the house, well, Cuddy was running, House was just limping along behind her.

"What, House?" She was currently in the middle of packing, packing to a trip she didn't want to take in the first place, and having House pestering her during the whole time was just adding fuel to the fire.

"Have you seen my blue shirt?" If Cuddy wasn't enjoying packing, he certainly did not either. If it were up to him, he'd take a couple of clean shirts, some underwear, a tooth brush and stuff everything in his good ol' backpack, but noooo, he had to neatly fold a gazilion different outfits and put everything, orderly, inside Cuddy's trolley. Pff... women!

"What?"

"My blue shirt! Can't find it!"

"It's in the bathroom!" Cuddy yelled back.

"It's not here, Cuddy!"

She let out an exasperated sigh as she ran from the living room, where she was currently gathering all her last minute paper work, to the bathroom.

She ran past House, directly to a pile of towels that she guessed were a consequence of his morning shower. She lifted the messy bundle of fabric and, not so much to her surprise, the case of the missing blue shirt was solved.

"Did you even look for it?" - Cuddy asked him, as she pushed the now wrinkly shirt against his chest - "I put this here, this morning, while you were in the shower. If you'd cleaned your mess, you wouldn't have any trouble finding it!"

House rolled his eyes as he watched her leave the bathroom with that characteristic pace of hers.

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><p>Two hours and a lot of frustration later, House and Cuddy were stretched on the couch, enjoying each other's embrace. As usual, Cuddy had her head resting on his chest, getting lulled by his breathing as House slowly caressed her head with his hand.<p>

She looked up, House was completely focused on his latest soap opera discovery, how could the man like that stuff she didn't know, but it was actually cute seeing him all worked up over a sudden surprise pregnancy or hook up.

"House I-"

"Shush, Cuddles, you don't want to miss this part."

Cuddy chuckled, there was definitely no way she could have a normal conversation with House when "Prescription Passion" or "Family Lies" was on.

"I need to talk to you, can't you pause the tv for a sec?" She tried once more. She was not telling House the whole truth about why she'd been planning on bailing from her high school reunion in the first place, and she felt guilty.

When House and Cuddy first started dating, they promised they would be as honest to each other as possible, of course there was the occasional lie, especially on House's behalf, but they've been sincere and straightforward from the beginning and even though she could choose some other time to tell House what happened, she felt like that was the right moment.

"But Cuddy..." - House whined - "Carlos is about to run his car against Amanda's house! And we're finally gonna find out if it was Sebastian's or Joe's tortoise that won the race..."

Cuddy rolled her eyes and sighed - "There's something you don't hear everyday... compelling television without a doubt..."

It was House's turn to roll his eyes, he looked at Cuddy and saw the way she was biting her bottom lip, he knew that that was her tell when she had to talk about something that made her uncomfortable, he took the remote and switched off the television.

"Okay, spit it out..."

Cuddy looked up again and smiled shyly - "I didn't tell you the whole truth about why I hid the letter from you..."

That got House's attention "Okay..." - They both sat up on the couch, Cuddy took a deep breath and spoke.

"Something happened on my senior year, and as much as I want to forget about it and pretend it was just a dream, I can't..." House was quiet, listening to her, he knew this had to be hard for her so he kept silent, encouraging her to continue.

"... It was a stupid mistake. I regret it ever since, and going back there..." she sighed "...going back there will only make me remember..." She was looking down at her hands, nervously playing with an elastic, twirling it between her fingers. House still didn't talk but, to let her know he was still listening, he took her small hands in his and lightly squeezed them. She looked up and smiled as she continued - "It will make me remember and I don't know if I can handle it, I don't know if _you_ can handle it..." Looking down again, Cuddy let a nervous laugh escape her lips.

"I'm a big boy, Cuddy, whatever you did can't be worse than what I've done during my thirty, awesome, years of existence" House had two types of smirks: one that said 'I know something you don't and you're screwed', that Cuddy labeled as his 'annoying smirk', and then there was the smirk he had on his face when he was trying to be, well, cute... in his own way, that is. That was the smirk he had on his face, he was trying to lighten the situation with a joke and she appreciated that.

"Thirty, uh?" She teased.

"Umg, can't pull a thirty?" - He pretended to be disappointed -" Thirty five, then?"

Cuddy shrugged and shaked her head slowly, forming her mouth into a small smile.

He pouted -"Forty...?" - he said hopeful.

She continued shaking her head, but this time her smile grew into a small chuckle. She kissed him lightly on the cheek.

"Thank you..."

Turning back to serious mode, House looked her in the eyes and spoke - " You don't have to tell me, I don't care if you do or not. What you did back then won't change the way I look at you now."

Cuddy was sorry for the people that didn't know this side of House, they'd see him as the jerk that jerked people around but forgot that inside that jerk was a, god forbid, caring man.

"Well... I was 17 when it happened-"

She told him everything and he listened.

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><p>Sorry, can't reveal Cuddy's secret just yet :P Stick around!<p>

_Got any ideas or suggestions? Let me know (:_

Oh, and since everybody thought the game thing was fun, here's this chapter's clue:

- There's four in our cerebral cortex, three in our cerebellums, two in our lungs and then some. What am I thinking of? ;)


	3. Chapter 3

Hello, people! I'm back with a new chapter :) I want to thank everybody that reviewed the previous one, although I had more favorite alerts than reviews XD Booo!

Anyway, now that school started I'll only be able to update on the weekends :/ I have college admittance exams in two months and I really need to focus on that.

I'm not completely satisfied with this chapter but I don't hate it either x) This first chapters are just leading up the the main event and then, my dears, s*it will happen /insert evil laugh here. I can't wait for you guys to read what I have prepared!

Oh, and **Mon Fogel **alerted me to something, so Cuddy is Jewish and her High School has a Christian name? MAJOR FAIL. Thank you so much for reminding me of this! :) Let's just forget this teeny tiny little detail, shall we guys? OBLIVIATE *waves wand in front of all of you*

Read on!

PS: A big fat thank you to **SissiCuddles **for being born 3 Check out her fics! (especially "Celeste")

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><p>The snow was falling on Cuddy's front yard. Little white flakes were slowly painting the ground, covering the grass with a fluffy white carpet, while the trees were dancing to the sound of the wind, their branches swinging rhythmically from a side to another, a pretty marvelous sight to see in Cuddy's opinion. She was currently lying awake in bed, looking out the window, letting the calming view soothe her.<p>

The day had come. House and her were driving to Portland in a few hours and they were going to the reunion. She felt both exited and terrified. After telling House about her regretful teenage misfortune she was presently surprised by his reaction, it felt good to know she had his support and that he didn't think less of her because of that one event she so desperately tried to forget throughout her life.

House could be a jerk most of time but, when he had his moments, he could also be the most amazing man she could ever wish to be evolved with.

She didn't know for how long she had been starring at the falling snowflakes outside but she didn't even bother to check the time, she felt an odd feeling of inner peace and relaxation that hardly ever graced her mind and body, courtesy of her stressful job.

House, who had been asleep the entire time, finally woke up. Even though he was facing Cuddy's back, he could tell she was awake. He slowly rose his torso, using his left arm for support and his right one to embrace his lover. Cuddy was startled, she was so lost in thought that she didn't even noticed House had stirred, it was only when she felt a pair of warm lips touching her cheeks that she came down to earth again.

"Morning..." Said the sleepy man with the muddled hair.

She turned and was now facing him, looking at his gorgeous blue eyes - "Hey.. You scared me." - Cuddy said as she reciprocated his kind gesture by pecking him lightly on the lips.

He yawned and scratched his head - "Sorry 'bout that..."

She chuckled softly to herself. In the mornings, Gregory House might as well be dead for the world cause it took him a good half an hour and a strong cup of Java coffee for him to fully function. It was cute.

He rubbed his eyes and looked at the clock on Cuddy's bedside table - "God Heavens, it's ingloriously early this morning." - He whined as he caught a look at the bright numbers on the display - "How long have you been awake, anyways?."

"A while... I couldn't sleep but I didn't feel like getting up either, so I just lay here." Cuddy replied, she was cuddled to House's chest, absentmindedly rubbing her finger in circular motions on his bicep.

"Nervous?" He inquired, looking down at her.

"A little bit..." She admitted, smiling nervously.

"C'mon..." - He said as he pushed down the covers - "We need to get ready."

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><p>They were three hours into the trip, both of them tad restless and annoyed, thanks to all the idiot drivers that passed by them, that House, not so kindly, reprehended.<p>

The couple decided it was best to stop at some drive in and get a bite to eat, they still had three more hours of driving ahead and both of them, especially House, got really grumpy on an empty stomach.

Not long after, they spotted a small restaurant on the side of the road, that, surprisingly, didn't look like it was completely unaware of the Department of Health's regulations. Bonus.

The problem now was getting to the front of the restaurant, that they later discovered was named 'Daisy's', without getting completely drenched. The snow, even though not falling with much intensity, was coming from everywhere due to the strong wind blowing outside, keeping them from opening an umbrella.

"Crap! There's no way we can get in without getting wet." House said, contemplating the white desert they'd soon have to cross.

"You're right..." - Cuddy sank further into the car seat, subconsciously withdrawing herself further from the cold atmosphere outside - "I can't believed I straightened my hair this morning for nothing!"

House rolled his eyes, leave it to Cuddy to worry about her hair when there were bigger problems, like, for example, getting pneumonia! Women...

Just when he was about to answer, they noticed a woman leaving the diner and running towards them, after she approached the car she knocked on the window.

"Afternoon, do ya folks need help getting in? I've got gabardines..." The woman lifted his harms and they noticed she was holding, in both her hands, two full body length colored gabardines.

Well... they did have to eat, didn't they?

"Thank you!" They said in unison.

House and Cuddy took the nice woman's offer and, mindful of the slippery path, made their way inside the warm and cozy looking dinner, being guided by their savior of the day the whole time. Once inside they were led to a small booth in the corner.

The woman introduced herself as Daisy, the owner of Daisy's Dinner.

"You guys choose your food, I'll be right back" With a wink, Daisy left to attend the other customers.

"That was so nice of her!" Cuddy commented.

"Yeah, you should give her a nice tip once we leave." - House remarked as he scammed his eyes through the menu.

"What makes you think I'm the one who's paying.?" Cuddy was now too scanning the menu as well for a decent, meat-free meal.

In the middle of their pointless conversation, a waiter approached their table with some drinks in hand - "Excuse me, a gentleman over there offered you guys some drinks." She pointed to a tall dark haired man that was currently sitting at the bar and waving his hand towards Cuddy. Needleless to say House didn't find the situation amusing whatsoever, on the other hand, once she looked at the friendly man, Cuddy's smile lit. He wasn't a stranger to her, she knew exactly who he was.

Once the man's attempt of recognition was well taken on Cuddy's part, he smiled too, and without missing a beat, started walking towards the little booth in the corner.

"My, my, my... Lisa Cuddy, look at you!" Cuddy rose from her seat and gave the man a tight hug.

Evan McConaughey was a good looking man, he had black wavy hair and intense brown eyes. His boyish features gave him a fresh looking vibe.

"Evan! Wow... I can't believe this! I never expected to find you here!" Although the hug wasn't as tight as it was at first, Cuddy had her hands on the man's shoulders and the pair, of apparently long lost friends, was still pretty close in House's opinion.

"Eihm.." House coughed.

Both Evan and Cuddy looked at House, who was still sitting at the table, looking up at them.

"Oh, I'm sorry, House... this is Evan McConaughey ..." - The tall man leaned down to shake House's hand, which he did, but not with the same smile plastered on his face though - "... he was my best friend in High School. Evan this is Gregory House, my-"

"Boyfriend!" - House interrupted - "It's, oh so nice to meet you!" Evan couldn't pick up on House's fake enthusiastic voice but Cuddy knew her man too well and she gave him a warning look, telling him to behave.

Ignoring House's jealousy outbreak, Cuddy turned to Evan again.

"So Evan, you here for the reunion as well?" She asked with her characteristic a thousand watt smile.

"Yeah, I drove from New York this morning and decided to make a quick stop here, and I'm glad I did! I missed you... You never call!" He accused Cuddy in a playful tone.

She bit her lip - "Well, you know, I've been busy... with work, and..."

He smiled sympathetically "Lisa, I know... after what happened I understand you wanted to leave everything about St. B's behind and..."

House picked up on how much Cuddy was starting to get uncomfortable when the conversation turned towards that touchy subject she didn't feel like talking or even thinking about.

"So, Evan! Tell me, were you a dork or a jock in High School?"

Evan's attention turned towards House who had left the poor man out of words with his question.

As the younger man tried to, now awkwardly, answer House's question, Cuddy looked at him and smiled gratefully mouthing a 'thank you' for his not so conventional way of taking that topic off the table.

After eating and paying their meals, the trio stood outside. The snow had stopped falling so there was no danger of getting damp.

"I'll see you guys at the reunion." - Evan spoke as he embraced Cuddy once again - "It was nice meeting you, Greg" - he shook his hand - "Bye, Lisa! Hope we have some time to catch up this week."

A few moments later, now alone in the car, House looked at Cuddy, who was smiling at him. No words were needed, House knew that Cuddy was going out of her way to have the courage to remind her bittersweet past, which would happen a lot during the following week, and he also knew that she could count on him when some idiot decided to bring the topic up. Unlike her, he had no problems in looking like a douche if that would, secretly, make her feel better.

The next three hours flew by and in a blink of an eye, the couple was parking in front of Cuddy's old childhood home.

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><p>Thoughts?<p>

Oh, and here are the winners of last chapters game! :D The correct answer was **'lobes' **

_Mon Fogel _You were the first to guess the correct answer, you earn three points! *claps*  
><em>IHeartHouseCuddy <em>you win two points, yay!  
>and <em>partypantscuddy... <em>lobe, get's you one point! (khehefhfhwiudhef, see what I did there?)

The rest of you who participated, I'm sorry but rules are rules, no points for you :( Better luck next time! And _SissiCuddles, _the answer wasn't 'boobies' but I give you a standing ovation for your existence! :3

On with the game...

This chapter's clue: I'm not Christ but I could be since I reinvented fashion with my revolutionary **_red_** ideas... Who am I?


	4. Chapter 4

Sorry it took me so long! But people insist I have a social life and all that crap( yeah, I know!) I've been busy. But since you're such awesome people I wrote a longer chapter for your reading pleasure! :D

We're getting ready for the reunion, munchkins! /cue to evil laugh.

PS: Hopefully next chapter will be beta read :)

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><p>It was eight o'clock at night when they finally arrived their destination, as they pulled over, Cuddy couldn't help but to feel a bittersweet sense of nostalgia floating through her body. Going back to the place where she'd spent almost half of her life brought back memories that had long been buried in her subconscious. She was suddenly reminded of her father and how he used to push her on the big red and yellow swings, she remembered the long inspirational conversations she used to have with her grandmother during the turmoil of her teenage years and she was also reminded of the countless times she used to sit on the roof whenever she needed some peace and quiet .<p>

She was brought back to reality by House's hand caressing he elbow.

"You're ready to go?".

She looked at him and smiled - "Yeah, we should probably go in. I told nana we'd be here half an hour ago, she's probably calling search teams at this point". She spoke, as she reminded herself of her grandmother's unique personality.

House puffed - "Well, we would have gotten here on time if someone, who I'm not gonna nominate, hadn't had to stop at every single rest stop to go pee-pee, now would we?" - He flashed her is characteristic grin and lightly kissed her forehead before getting out of the car.

Meanwhile, inside of the house, a worried Evelyn Cuddy was looking out the window and letting a sigh of relieve escape her lips as she watched her granddaughter's silver Prius park on the side of the road. She practically ran out the door.

House and Cuddy weren't even done getting their bags out of the truck of the car when Evelyn got out of the house and ran to her, secretly, favorite granddaughter.

"Lisa! Oh my God, I was worried sick about you!" - Cuddy was startled by her grandmother almost smothering her to death. No, seriously, Evelyn had such a tight grip on her that she could swear her lungs had shrunk a tiny bit. The elderly woman finally decided to let go of her, albeit love induced, death grip and took a few seconds to look at her beautiful granddaughter, taking her wrinkled hands in Cuddy's soft ones.

"Oh , Lisa... you look way to skinny!" - Evelyn noticed with a scrawl on her face - "You've been working yourself to exhaustion again, haven't you?" - she turned her attention to House, who had be standing there, looking at the whole scene - "You told me you'd take care of my little girl!"

House would never admit it but he did get a kick out of spending time with Cuddy's grandmother, the woman had some sort of vibe eradiating through her fragile body that intrigued him. On the outside, Evelyn looked like a naive, little sweet old lady that spent her days knitting and petting her cats, but, once you got to know her, you'd see that, on the inside, she was a kick butt old lady that wasn't afraid to speak her mind and, contrary to popular believe, had experienced all extreme sports known to mankind. He had the most entertaining argues with her, must to Cuddy's dismay.

"Oh, she gets all the ogling and hugging while I'm completely ignored and when you finally seek in you cold, cold heart the kindness to acknowledge my presence, I get yelled at. So not fair..." - He mockingly spoke to the ebony hair colored woman - "I'm hurt, Evelyn..." - he put his right hand on top of his chest while his left covered Cuddy's view of his mouth, pretending to be hiding something from her - "... I thought I was your favorite."

House's sarcastic tone made Evelyn role his eyes - "Oh, stop being a baby, Gregory! You're a big boy now, and..." - she let go of Cuddy's hands and stepped closer to him, leaning in to embrace her, hopefully soon to be, grandson in a friendly hug - "... don't worry, you'll always be my number one." - she said playfully as she winked her eye at the diagnostician.

"Cuddleeees! I think your grandmother is hitting on me" He shouted with a chuckled.

Cuddy rolled her eyes "Here we go..."

"Can't blame an old lady for trying. C'mon let's get you two inside, you must be starving!" And with that, Evelyn took Cuddy's hand and led her inside the house.

"Psssh, sure! Leave the cripple carrying the heavy baggage, you're all made from the same dark matter!"

Both Cuddy ladies laughed and kept making their way to the front door.

"Oh, stop being such a baby, Gregory!" Cuddy shouted as her body disappeared inside the house.

* * *

><p>Half an hour later, the trio was in the kitchen savoring one of Evelyn's many culinary delicacies. House, of course, was piggin' out and eating like a cave man, something that made Cuddy to twist her face in disgust.<p>

"God, House, you look like you haven't eaten in months!"

"Cuddy, your grandmother makes the best food ever! Do you know what it's like to eat Wilson's revolting culinary mooches? It's taking a toll on my _caliculus gustatorius._"

Cuddy just rolled her eyes - "Sometimes I think I'm dating a ten year old..."

House looked up, looking offended - "Hey! Ten and a half, thank you very much! God, Cuddy you-"

In the meantime, Evelyn was watching the couple's banter and smiling to herself. Sure, Gregory House was a pain in the ass and a rude jerk at times but she had never seen her baby girl so happy. Cuddy had suffered enough in life and seeing her smile was the best thing she could ask for.

"Okay, kids, stop arguing and eat you dinner!" - Evelyn interfered in what she guessed was House and Cuddy's weird concept of foreplay.

* * *

><p>After dinner, they had moved to the living room and were enjoying a hot cup of chocolate by the fireplace.<p>

"Shoot!" Cuddy said out of nowhere.

Both House and Evelyn looked at her puzzled.

"Nana, you know where can I find an open pharmacy at this time of the night?"

"Why, hun, do you need something? Are you feeling ill? Are you okay? I have some medicine in the bathroom." It was typical Evelyn to jump to an overdrive snowball fallacy.

"No, no! I'm okay." - Cuddy reassured her two loved ones - "I just... forgot my pill at home." - she admitted, slightly embarrassed.

"Oh" - Evelyn said surprised while House sat back in the couch grinning in the background - "Well, dear, you can't be missing those... There's a 24/7 pharmacy in downtown Portland."

Cuddy turned to House and smiled apologetically.

"Oh, no! Cuddy, it's ten o'clock at night, it's cold and I'm lazy. There's no way I'm getting out of the House." He crossed his arms over his abdomen.

"C'mon, House, it's just a few blocks away... please!" She tried once more.

"Cuddieeeeee" He whined - "My leg hurts!"

She scoffed - "I can't believe you're using the cripple card again!"

"Well, it's way past my bed time"- Evelyn said, as she got up and kissed her granddaughter, who was currently sitting on the floor next to her, on the top of her head - "I'll leave you two love birds to settle your decisions, although, in my opinion, Greg, you should get your lazy behind off the couch and drive your girlfriend to the pharmacy." - She grinned at House.

"Ooh, C'mon! Two against one? I knew I should have brought Jimmy along..." House gave in and got up from the couch.

Cuddy smiled at her grandmother who winked at her.

"You can take my keys. Nigh night!" And with that she disappeared down the hallway.

Not long after, House and Cuddy were making their way to downtown Portland, trying not to fall on their asses as they made their way to the entrance door. It was dark and the snow was falling again so there wasn't that much time to enjoy the view as Cuddy wished.

As they made their way in, a little bell announced their presence and a funny looking man, with an hilariously appalling red bowtie turned to them.

"How can I help you?"

Cuddy looked at House and then turned her attention to the man "Umh, good evening sir. I'm looking for..."

While Cuddy was requesting her pills, House spent his time wandering around the pharmacy, looking at all the different tablets and capsules stored in square glassed displayers and, just for fun, naming all the diseases he could think of that could be treated by the several types of medicine he was looking at.

While lost in his game, he didn't even noticed the small golden bell ringing again much less the woman whose entered caused it to ring.

Emma Sloan was, once again, running to the pharmacy at inglorious hours at night, something she though she wouldn't have to do anylonger once her son passed the baby stage. Wrong! Joshua had gotten himself, don't ask her why, a gigantic rash on his back and she had no choice but to come and buy some kind of lotion before her son ripped is skin off with the scratching.

Much to her surprise, when she was debating whether to go with "Halibut" or "Bepanthene", her eyes landed on no one other but Dr. Gregory House.

"Dr. House?" She called.

Hearing his name, he turned his head to the slim woman with a familiar face.

"Who's asking?" - He inquired with a hint of suspiciousness in his voice.

Emma took House in a quick embrace, something that left him with an expression close to one of a deer caught in headlights.

"I'm sorry..." - Emma said as she pulled away - "You probably don't remember me. I'm Emma Sloan, I was your patient four years ago at Princeton Plainsboro. I was diagnosed with Mirror Syndrome..."

_Emma Sloan... Emma Sloan... __Emma Sloan... Oh!_ - House's brain tried to recapitulate to all his previous patients, which was stupid considering he'd had over thousands of patients and he really didn't put that much effort into remembering their faces. But then, out of the sudden, something clicked in his brain - _That Emma Sloan!_

Emma Sloan had indeed been a patient of his, she'd been pregnant back then and he'd diagnosed her with Mirror Syndrome. Her fetus was cauding her to have liver and kidney failiure. He remembered he'd wanted her to terminate the pregnancy but due to Cuddy's annoying meddling, they had manage to save the baby by engaging on a risky procedure that almost cost her life.

Before he had time to say anything, Cuddy appeared by his side, looking slightly annoyed.

"With all the pharmacists in the world, we had to get the Mormon one. Seriously this people-" Cuddy stopped talking when she noticed the other female presence in the room with them.

"Umh, hello..." She said doubtful, looking at House, searching for an answer to the question of who was the lady standing in front of them.

Emma's smile lit once she set eyes on Cuddy - "Dr. Cuddy is so good to see you!" - she embraced Cuddy as well, only this time, in a much friendlier way - "I'm Emma Sloan, I was a patient of yours a few years ago, I don't know if you remember but you saved my baby's life."

Cuddy didn't need to think much before realizing who was standing before her. Emma Sloan, of course!

"Oh yes, of course, I remember! It's odd finding you here. How's your boy?" Cuddy genuinely wondered about Emma's son. House not so much but he stayed quiet .

"He's wonderful, thanks to you an Dr. House!" - the woman's happiness when talking about her son was touching, something that made Cuddy's heart warm - "And I have to admit that it is odd finding you both here, together."

Cuddy blushed and glanced at House.

Emma picked up on the doctors' embarrassment and smiled.

"Well, if there's anything I could do, here's my card..." - she handed House a small card - "I'm currently running my photography business here in Portland. If there's anything I can do for you, I'll be glad to do it. I can't thank you enough for saving Joshua's life, he's my everything. Thank You."

"We were doing our job" Cuddy spoke, blushing a little.

"What she said."

After Emma left, House could see the pride in Cuddy's eyes as she smiled at him. He knew that seeing Emma was the best thing that could happen for Cuddy to have faith in herself as a doctor.

That night, they both slept like babies. The thoughts of whta could possibly go wrong during Cuddy's high school reunion were replaced but the satisfaction on saving two human lives.

* * *

><p>How badass is Cuddy's Gran?<p>

Penny for your thoughts :3

The correct answer to last chapter's clue was **_'Louboutin'_**:D a.k.a. GOD  
>And the winners are...<br>-_IHeartHouseCuddy _with 3 points! Making a total of 5 points :)  
><em>-LiaHuddy <em>with two :D  
>and last but not least<br>_- dlb42694 _getting a total of 1 point :)

Cookies for everyone who participated and reviewed

**4th Chapter's clue: **I was a bad ass polish lady that took no shit from radioactivity - Who am I?


	5. Chapter 5

Shalom, everybody! Here I am once again with a new chapter, and this time it's beta read by the sweet Sydney - aka partypantscuddy - go send her some love :P  
>Before you move on to the chapter I want you guys to tell me honestly if you want me to continue this, I've been getting less and less hits on this fic and I just want to know if it's worth it.<p>

Now on with the fic! I warn you, though, this is my last happy chapter. I'll finally start adding some drama to this :3

* * *

><p>Cuddy was wide awake in what used to be her bed, House sleeping soundly next to her.<p>

Finding Emma that night had made her feel different about herself and her abilities somehow. Sure, she only saved them because she was drowning in hormones at the time; she only fought for their lives because she saw herself in Emma, a successful business woman in her early forties with no one but her baby to call a family. She saved them because she believed; she believed that, somehow, by saving Emma's dream, hers would come true. House had been right when he accused her of being too emotionally invested in the case because of her own personal reasons.

She smiled.

She saved two people. Two human lives.

And Karma had given her a pat on the shoulder, not the heartfelt hug she was hoping for but she couldn't say she minded. Emma had thanked her, with a thousand watt smile, for saving her child's life and that was enough for Cuddy. Yes, she couldn't deny that 'a hug ' wouldn't have been better. She'd wanted to have a child of her own, someone she could share half of her DNA with and to love unconditionally more than anything in the world. But someone had decided that that wasn't her destiny, someone decided that she wasn't meant to be a mom and she was okay with her fate.

She smiled again, only this time, a tiny trace of sadness accompanied it.

One thing was slightly different now though. She did have a family, a rather unconventional family but a family nonetheless.

She looked over to the sleeping form drooling next to her. She carefully traced her small hand over her lover's scruff and smiled.

Yeah, she had a family.

* * *

><p>After concluding that staying in bed wouldn't do much for her, Cuddy decided to make herself some tea and start to read the new book she'd bought purposely for this 'vacation'.<p>

As she made her way down the stairs, she heard the characteristic whistle of her grandmother's kettle echoing through the hallway. Apparently Evelyn had gotten ahead of her.

"Good morning, dear! You're up early." Evelyn said cheerfully.

"Morning , nana... I couldn't go back to sleep, it's my inner clock telling me it's time for work, I guess." Cuddy replied dismissively, there was no need to tell Evelyn about the real reason why she wasn't asleep next to House at that moment. Her grandmother was a wonderful person but she tended to make a big deal out of everything when concerning her family's well being.

The older woman eyed the tired looking doctor suspiciously, she knew her grandbaby well enough to know when she was hiding something, but she also knew that if anything was bothering Cuddy, she's come around to tell her when she felt like it.

"I guess Greg's inner clock must be broken then..." Evelyn still wondered what was worrying Cuddy but she chose to ignore her 'Grandma-y Senses' for the time being.

Cuddy chuckled "Oh, I don't think he even owns a clock! For him any time before 9 is dreadful."

The Cuddy women laughed.

"Here-" Evelyn handed a cup of a very welcomed steamy hot liquid to Cuddy "- it's your favorite. I'll make you breakfast pancakes in the meantime. You need energy."

Cuddy was halfway through the third chapter of her book when someone rang the doorbell. She reluctantly freed herself from the wool blanket she had wrapped around her body and ran to the door.

She wasn't expecting anyone in particular and neither did her grandmother, or so she thought.

Mr. Harries had been her neighbor for as long as she could remember. He was a rather peculiar looking man with his grey hair and his lop sided smile that never seemed to fade from his face. No one had ever seen that man wear anything but his vast collection of flashy bow ties that were so characteristic of him. Cuddy remembered going to his house when she was little just so he could read to her from his medical books and tell her stories about his patients.

"Lisa Cuddy! I can't believe my eyes, my, my, my, look at you!" Ronald Harries was stunned. He hadn't seen Lisa since her last visit a few years ago. She still looked the same physically but there was something about the way she was smiling at him that seemed different, she looked happy.

"Mr. Harries! It's so good to see you." Cuddy was genuinely happy to see him, she immediately hugged the old man who was more than happy to hug back.

Before they had time to say anything else other than hello, Cuddy's grandmother appeared in the hallway looking a slight bit pissed off.

"Thank Godness, you're here, Ronald! What took you so long?" She asked annoyed by her friend's tardiness.

"Pardon me, m'am! I was busy living my life." Ronald took no time to retort in the quick wit he reserved for Evelyn only.

Evelyn and Ronald had known each other since their early teenage years. When Evelyn's family moved to Portland, Ronald was the first person to actually be nice to her; he'd showed her around the neighborhood and introduced her to the other kids in the area which instantly resulted in a very strong friendship between the two. He was like an older version of Wilson with a slight dash of House.

Cuddy chuckled at the man's comment while Evelyn rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Whatever, Ron. Just get in there quick, the bathroom sink has been driving me crazy, the stupid thing keeps clothing for no reason."

Ronald turned to Cuddy, "Excuse me, dear, I've got to prevent Evelyn from destroying the house furniture. Don't go too far, we need to catch up!"

Cuddy nodded as she watched the two "grown-ups" leave the room.

In the meantime, House had been watching the whole scene from upstairs, being woken up by the loud ringing just a few moments ago. He made his way down the stairs, grabbing the handrail for support.

"Looks like grandma Cuddles got herself a boy toy." He said, with that sleazy grin of his.

At first Cuddy was startled but then, when she noticed to whom that voice belonged to, she rolled her eyes, quiet the same way Evelyn had just did.

"Look who finally decided to grace us with his presence" Cuddy said teasingly.

"I'm sorry if I'm not an early bird like you, Cuddy, but I'll never, ever get up before nine am when I'm on vacation."

"Or working for that matter..."

House grinned.

"Touché."

House grabbed Cuddy by the waist and pulled her to him, leaving her little time to react to his sudden attack. He kissed her lips passionately as he brought his hand to her face. When they broke the kiss, they looked at each other and smiled lovingly. Who would have thought that, after all this time, they'd beat all the odds and still have a place in each other's lives.

They were interrupted by a coughing sound coming from Evelyn who was looking at them with a smirk on her face.

"Now that's what I call a bed hair" She said, referring to House's tangled hair.

He groaned, "Cuddy, you're grandmother is being mean to me again." he whined with a fake pout.

For the umpteenth time that morning, Cuddy rolled her eyes.

"All done! The sink is at its full capacity again." Ronald shouted as he appeared in the living room, where the trio was standing - "Oh..." - he said, looking at House -"I'm Ronald Harris, I'm the neighbor. I'm just here to fix the sink." He introduced himself.

"Is that what you kids are calling it these days?" - House shock the elder man's hand - "Gregory House, I'm Cuddy's snuggle muffin."

Both Cuddies rolled their eyes simultaneously.

Ronald was a bit taken aback by House's bluntness but he soon got over it when he realized that neither of the women present were in the slightest bit shocked, so he just assumed he was probably like that naturally.

"Anyway..." - Evelyn started - "Greg, there are pancakes in the kitchen, but I wouldn't advise you to eat much cause..." She didn't have time to finish her sentence. As soon as House heard the world 'pancakes' his eyes wined and he limped/ran his way to the kitchen.

"... lunch will be ready soon."

* * *

><p>The snow finally seemed to be melting and there was already some green peeking out through the immense white. In an attempt of getting House out of the kitchen and off the pancakes, Cuddy took him for a walk around the block.<p>

"This is nice..." Cuddy broke the silence. She was leaning against House, with her arm wrapped around his and her hand strategically placed inside his black overcoat's pocket.

House looked at Cuddy and smiled mischievously. "You want to go back inside the house don't you?"

Cuddy made a face and stuck her tongue out at him. She scoffed, there he was once again reading her like an open book. After a few seconds she said quietly, much to House's amusement, "Yes, please... I'm freezing!"

"It was your idea to get some fresh air, if it were up to me. We'd stay inside the house till the reunion."

They walked together until they reached Evelyn's back yard. They'd gone through the back of the house to escape the unenviable meeting with some of the people living nearby. It wasn't that Cuddy didn't like her former neighbors but, when people don't see you for a long time, they tend to get overly talkative when they encounter you and she just wanted to save reencounters for her reunion night.

They had to free themselves some each other's embrace to be able to go down the small path that'd led them to the back door of the big rustic house.

Cuddy was walking slowly, unaware of House's evil plan. He quietly diverted from walking along with Cuddy and hid behind a tree, taking a small amount of the remaining snow still lying on the ground.

"Hey, honeybuuuns!" House shouted.

Cuddy turned around.

SMACK!

The snowball hit Cuddy right in her chest -"You..." - Her eyes squinted threateningly. This meant war.

_'Let the games begin..' _ House thought. Dodging himself from a surprisingly accurate throw .

In the meantime, in a complete different environment, surrounded by the warm breeze of an air conditioner, Ronald and Evelyn were washing some dishes in the good company of Mozart's 40th Symphony.

Ronald looked through the window and smiled , his hazel eyes landing on the snowball fight happening outside. House had captured Cuddy and was currently trapping her with his arms around her waist, preventing her to put in practice her next move. She was laughing uncontrollably, trying to free herself from House's strong hold. Without a warning and mindful of his injured leg, House turned their bodies and they fell on the cold ground.

"I've never seen Lisa so happy and carefree since the accident..." Ronald commented as he noted that Evelyn was too watching the pair.

Evelyn smiled as she handed him a plate for him to dry - "Yeah... he may be an infuriating schmuck most of the time... but he's good for her. I'm just worried. Lisa has been through so much..."

Ron nudged Evelyn's arm with his elbow as he noticed her worried tone of voice.

"Eve, don't worry. Lisa's a strong woman, she's moving on now. The fact that she's willing to come back here with a smile on her face tells a lot about her."

"You're right" she smiled.

* * *

><p>They were all at the table enjoying another one of Evelyn's heavenly tasteful meals when the doorbell rang. They all stared at each other, except for Evelyn, who just wiped her mouth and rose from her chair.<p>

"That's probably Julia."

* * *

><p>Hate it? Love it? Let me know! :)<p>

Last chapter's answer was **_'Marie_****_ Curie'_**_  
><em>And the Emmy goes to...  
>- <em>IHeartHouseCuddy <em>with 3 points! Earning a total of 8 points! :D  
>- <em>Irene3651 <em>with 2 points (welcome to the game! ;P)  
>- <em>dlb2654 <em>adding 1 point to her score, making a total of 2  
>I'm sorry I can't give points to all of you but rules are rules! x)<p>

**Clue no.4:** I'm the world's most famous carbonated drink. Who am I?

PS: Please take a minute of your time to worship Lisa Edelstein's face. gfqwfgqwh. 


	6. Chapter 6

... hi. Have I mentioned how cute you look in those jeans? Oh, and your hair? hot. (not trying to prevent you from hitting me)

I know, I know... it took me forever to update and for that I'm incredibly sorry. Forgive me.

To make it up for you, lovely readers, I've written the longest chapter in this story so far :3 It was originally supposed to the even longer but I decided to slip it in two, yup, that means we're just a chapter away from the reunion!

Shout out to **partypantscuddy **for beta reading this :)

* * *

><p>The look on both House and Cuddy's faces were not ones of amusement, they were looking at each other skeptically, both trying to figure out what the hell was Julia doing there. It wasn't a secret that House and Julia's relationship wasn't the most cordial one. They couldn't stand each other and Cuddy often found herself having to play referee to prevent them killing each other, and it was not her favorite hobby if you asked her.<p>

Julia strode in the dining room, followed by her husband Mathew and her 5 year old son, Joshua.

Unlike his parents, little Joshua came running through the room directly towards Cuddy. His unbrushed dirty blond hair hanging messily from his head, swaying with his rapid movements.

"Auntie Lisa!" the little boy exclaimed with joy.

Cuddy immediately crouched down to the boy's level and hugged him tightly. His short arms wrapping themselves around her neck and his head falling on her right shoulder, leaving his neck exposed, where Cuddy placed a small kiss.

"Joshua! You look so big." Cuddy commented on the boy's noticeable growth in height.

"I grew almost 3 inches!" Joshua said excitedly.

Cuddy widened her eyes in surprise "Three inches? Wow, you're gonna beat me in no time!"

Joshua grinned, the thought of growing up to be as big as his father always put a smile on his face. He wanted to be big and strong so he could become a doctor like his aunt Lisa.

As Joshua and Cuddy continued to catch up, Julia and Mathew were saying their hellos to the other family members in the room. Julia would occasionally glance at Cuddy and Joshua and subtly roll her eyes, something that didn't go unnoticed by House who was still sitting at the table, not even bothering to stand up when Cuddy's sister stood in front of him with one of those fake smiles she was so keen on mustering every time she was internally cursing someone, in this case, him.

"Hello, Greg. It's nice to see you." Julia said with an inch of bitterness in her voice . "Not even bothering to stand up, uh?"

House grinned. "Oh, I'm so sorry", he raised his hand to the left side of his chest, clutching a bit of his shirt in his fist . "How terrible of me! I would get up but... crippled leg and all..." If there was a machine that could detect sarcasm, it would be beeping frantically or perhaps bursting from overload from the tone of House's voice. He knew how much Julia was trying o be cordial with him, how much she was trying to control herself in order to give the impression that they were, somehow, an happy loving family and he just loved to push her buttons.

"Riiiiight... " Julia rolled her eyes. To think she was trying to be nice to this guy, ugh, some people were just not worth it. How this jerk ended up with her sister? God only knows!

"... and then, daddy and I found a huge fish just hanging on the hook!" Meanwhile, Joshua was telling Cuddy the exciting story about how he and his daddy had caught the biggest fish in the world last weekend. He was still in his aunt's lap but his arms weren't wrapped around her neck anymore. He was stretching his tiny arms to show just how big the fish they'd caught was.

"Joshua, you forgot to tell aunt Lisa how I wouldn't be able to pull the fish out of the water if it weren't for you..." Mathew tickled his son while he leaned down to kiss Cuddy on the cheek, unlike House and Julia, Cuddy and Mathew were very good friends, they had actually known each other longer than Julia did and that built them a very strong foundation for their friendship.

"Hey, Mat, how have you been?" Cuddy asked her friend, they didn't see each other as frequently as they used to and that was something that saddened her.

"I'm good, I'm good. Wow! It's been ages since we last got a change to talk" He replied, with the same sad look in his eyes.

"Well, family festivities are not really our strong point…" Cuddy was gesturing towards their lovers who were still mentally throwing knives at each other.

Mathew was not very fond of House either but that was something he liked to keep to himself when Cuddy was around, he just couldn't comprehend was a woman like Cuddy could be attracted to a man like House. They were so different from each other! He was an, well, he was an asshole and she… she was marvelous.

"Aunt Lisaa! You're not listening to me." Joshua pouted, not thrilled with the way the grown-ups were ignoring his amazing narrative of his latest school activities.

Before either Cuddy or Mathew had time to beg for the little boy's forgiveness , Julia interrupted the trio in order to properly greet her sister.

"Hey, Lisa. How was the high school reunion?" She asked, seemingly interested to the public eye but Cuddy knew she was just being polite and most likely faking interest in her sister's life.

"How are you Jules?" The two sisters kissed each other chastely on the cheeks . "The reunion is not until tomorrow."

"Oh, okay… Mat, honey, could you please help me get some stuff out of the car? And Joshua, you're too big to be in your aunt's lap like that." Just from that interaction, you could see who wore the pants and who dictated the rules in that relationship, Mathew didn't even make a single noise, he just nodded his head and made his way to the front door, slightly waving at House in the process. Joshua on the other hand, didn't like the idea of letting go of his aunt and he didn't understand why his mother didn't want him to be in people's laps anymore. He knew he was a big boy now but aunt Lisa had told him that he would always be her little man, and always means forever.

"Oh, it's okay, Julia. He's not that heavy." Joshua's smile brightened, he let out a small laugh when Cuddy poked his belly.

Julia rolled her eyes - "I'm just saying… you're not used to carrying children all day, I'm just concerned you'll hurt your back." - and with that, Julia turned and left.

There it was, that stupid fake concern Cuddy despised so much.

Joshua noted the slightly darker shade of his aunt's eyes, he didn't know why but what his mommy had said made her look sad.

"Don't worry, auntie Lisa, you're super strong, like Popeye!" He exclaimed excitedly.

Now that the cost was clear of Wicked Witches of the West, House cold leave his safe spot and join Cuddy and Joshua, who were still standing in the middle of the room.

"Pshaw! That's nothing. Popeye? Please, he has nothing on me! I'm waaay stronger than him!" House loved to pick on the little guy. Their relationship was based on mutual teasing. It was no joke when Cuddy said that sometimes it looked like she was dating a five year old.

"Na-uh!" Joshua stuck his tongue out ."Popeye is more strong than you! And aunt Lisa too!" The boy had the cutest evil grin plastered on his face.

House made an insulted face, much to both Joshua and Cuddy's amusement . "First of all, it's stronger not more strong, you dummy face. And secondly, I am hurt! I'm so much stronger than your aunt!" He pointed at the boy . "You've awakened the beast. Prepare for consequences, you smelly old scoundrel!"

The boy wiggled himself out of Cuddy's lap and started running away from House who, even with a bump leg, didn't waste a second before going after him.

They left Cuddy standing in the middle of the room, laughing quietly to herself. Ron showed up at the door, smiling too as he witnessed how House was limping around trying to grab Joshua.

He put his hands on Cuddy's shoulders as he commented " I had no idea House was so good with children."

Cuddy turned to face the older man.

"Yeah, he's not very fond of people but he likes to be around 'surprisingly not that annoying kids'" She quoted in the air. "I think it's because he can relate to them."

Ronald chuckled "Maybe you two should think about having children, you'd make wonderful parents."

It was impossible to miss the look on Cuddy's face, she lowered her head to the ground and sighed. Ronald knew he had hit a sensitive topic. He took Cuddy's small hand in his roughed one and tried his best to make up for whatever wrong he had done to his favorite little girl, cause no matter what age, he would always look at her as the child he had never had.

"I'm sorry, Lisa. Did I say anything I shouldn't? Ah, look at me, always nosing on other people's business!"

Cuddy raised her head "No! You did nothing wrong… It's just that…"

Evelyn chose that precise moment to show up, clueless to the heavy cloud lingering in the room.

"Lisa! There you are. Listen, I'm going to market with your sister and Mathew. Joshua is God knows where with your boyfriend so I'm hoping you could babysit for a while. Ronald, as usual, make yourself at home. There's hot chocolate in the kitchen. Behave!"

Ronald looked at Cuddy who was smiling, watching her grandmother leave hurriedly, with the same stride she used whenever she wanted to yell at someone at the hospital.

He squeezed her hand.

"I'm gonna get us a cup of hot chocolate. Meet me in the yard swing in five?"

Cuddy managed to form a shy smile on her face and nodded.

She was seated in the big silver swing, facing the back yard of the house. She was looking thoughtfully at the trees in front of her, all covered with snow, with little leaves peeking through the white. It was beautiful how the winter managed to redesign the landscape, how it was powerful enough to change everything, the warm colors of Autumn fading away as the cold season's shades took control.

Opening the door, mindful of the two cups of steamy liquid in hand, Ronald made his way to the shed where Cuddy was currently in. He sat beside her and handed her a red mug that she immediately wrapped her hands around, in an attempt to avail from the heat eradiating from it.

They sat there, silently, mesmerizing the scene in front of them. They could hear Joshua's laughter in the background, apparently House had brought his Wii with him and, by the looks of it, was currently getting his ass kicked by a five year old.

"I'm sorry if I upset you, Lisa. It wasn't my intention." Ronald had seen the look in Cuddy's eyes and that was something he couldn't bear. He knew something wasn't okay with the little girl, the strong woman, he cared so much about and if by talking to him she could at least unburden a small percent of what was upsetting her, he'd encourage her to talk.

She looked at him, shaking her head slightly. "I can't have children…" She said promptly, lowering her head, somehow finding her hands as something incredibly interesting . "I never told this to nan but, a few years ago, before I even started dating House, I tried to have a baby. I chose the donor and was ready to start the IVF. I had made up my mind about it and was confident that I was ready to overcome anything preventing me from achieving my goal. I just didn't count on my own body failing on me…" There were a few stubborn tears that were threatening to fall from her eyes, but she took a deep breath and continued . "I tried for about two times before I got pregnant. I managed to carry the baby successfully for a couple of weeks, but then…" She sobbed. Ronald squeezed her to encourage her to continue. "… but then I lost it…" Now the tears were freely pouring from her eyes. She thought it was pathetic to be reacting the way she was but couldn't stop the tears from falling. "I tried again, thinking it was just my body trying to adjust to a new situation and that it took sometime before that happened but, when I miscarried the second time, I knew something wasn't right. My doctor said it was probably just a bad reaction to the fertility meds, that sometimes women needed a different type of medication for inseminations to work efficiently but, I just… gave up, I guess."

Ronald was looking at her, he had no idea those bright blue eyes could hold such amount of sadness in them.

After taking a deep breath and drying the tears, Cuddy somehow found the strength to continue. "I had convinced myself that motherhood was something that was just not destined for me and I was okay with it, well, as okay as one could be. I was moving on, I forced myself to focus on my job and I was moving on. Then I started dating House and the idea of becoming a mother started to fade slowly from my mind. Up until a few weeks ago though." She laughed bitterly. " I discovered I was pregnant when House and I went to a conference in Detroit two months ago. I left my pill at home and, somehow, I forgot I had to take it. I couldn't believe it! I was happy, terrified but happy. Karma had finally rewarded me…" Another bitter chuckle escaped her lips. "…I should have known better than to believe that this time would be different…"

Cuddy wasn't facing Ronald, he still had his hand wrapped around hers but he didn't say anything. He simply sat there, listening to her, letting her relief the bitterness floating within her. He handed her a tissue which she took gratefully.

One more deep breath and she continued. "I didn't tell House I was pregnant, I wanted to surprise him, I think. I wanted to make sure everything was okay before I told him. I scheduled a doctor's appointment but, the night we came back home, I woke up in the middle of the night feeling the most excruciating pain I had ever felt in my entire life and I knew. I knew what was happening." Cuddy sobbed quietly. Ronald's chest was hurting by seeing how hard this was to her . "After that I just knew something was wrong and I couldn't ignore it anymore. I did some tests and, last week, I got the results…" Her gaze shifted from her hands to the swinging branches of the big oak tree just a few meters away. Sighing and perhaps sobbing a little she envied how free the wind was, at least at that moment she did. She didn't want to finish her sentence, it was almost like admitting it to himself that it was true, that it wouldn't go away. "It's impossible for me to carry a pregnancy full term."

There is was. The truth she had been holding inside her was finally out. She felt a slight bit relived to be talking about it but she didn't feel any less miserable like she hoped it would.

Ronald was stunned out of words. He wanted to console her, he wanted to tell her that everything would be alright, he wanted to make the pain go away, but he couldn't. He opted to provide with some comfort instead, he knew he couldn't make her suffering subside, so all he could do was let her know that she had a friend she could count on if she needed. He took the red mug from Cuddy's hand and placed it on the ground, as he did with his own. With both his hands free now, he took both of Cuddy's hands in his own, getting her to look at him for the first time since their conversation started.

"Lisa, I had no idea you were going through this. I'm sorry I brought this up. " His left hand left her right one, he slowly rose it to her face and wiped a few tears with his thumb "And I know there's nothing I can say that will make this any easier for you. I can't take the pain away. But I want you to know that you can always count on me, you can always count on your favorite neighbor to be there whenever you need him to."

Cuddy, no matter how hurt she was feeling, had to smile at Ronald's comment. He was indeed her favorite neighbor. He was like family.

She nodded and dared herself to let a shy smile grace her lips. "Thank you."

Squeezing her hands softly again, Ronald tried to transmit some confidence to Cuddy. His actions were welcomed by her part, she felt relieved she could finally let this out of her chest. Holding this secret in was damaging her, she had needed to talk to someone about it and she didn't regret choosing Ronald to be the one to listen to it.

"And now, chin up, monkey. I want you to be proud of yourself for what you've overcome in life. Remember how strong you are and how brave you've been. I know I might have never known what it's like to lose a child and I'm really sorry you had to go through that, but remember, everything happens for a reason. If you're meant to be a mother it will happen, there are other options besides carrying it yourself. Don't let this bring you down."

Cuddy had to laugh at Ronald's nickname for her. He started calling her that when she was about 6 years old and it kind of stuck. It gave her a warm sense of protectiveness and familiarity that she was grateful for.

"House doesn't want kids." She said with longing in her voice.

Ronald chuckled "How do you know that? Have you asked him?"

"Well, I… I haven't. But I just know. He's been saying that for years."

He shook her head. "Maybe he doesn't want to have kids with anyone except you." He rose from his seat and kissed her lightly on her forehead. " Think about it."

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><p>Please don't hurt me.<p>

PS: I have some bad news... my exams start in 2 weeks so... I probably won't update. I'll try, promise!  
>PSS: RIP House MD, you've completely screwed up my life and for that I salute you.<p>

**Last chapter's answer: **Coca-cola  
>and here are the winners :D<br>_Irene3651 - _3 points for you! You've got yourself a total of 5 points.  
><em>IHeartHouseCuddy <em>- 2 points for you. You're leading the charts with 10 points  
><em>dlb42694 <em>- one more point adding to your other 2. 3 points :) 

As usual, thank you so so much for all you guy's comments! They really make me a puddle of mushy emotion I'll try to reply to all of you after my exams. Tell me what you think of this chapter! 

**This chapter's clue: **It's a music style created and only listenable in Portugal. Usually sang by only one person called a "fadista" and accompanied by the melody of a classical guitar. Recently made Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.


	7. Chapter 7

**This chapter is a big fat hoe. While I was studying for my exams all I felt like doing was writing but after they ended my muse was like "IDEAS? LOL GTFO ADIOS BICHANOS". Don't ask me why. I don't even know. Suffice to say, I started writing it two weeks ago and just now finished it through sheer force of will. *le sigh* I know I said the reunion was in the next chapter but since I haven't written what I wanted in this I still have one more before it.**

**I'm a horrible human being. **

**Shout out to _partypantscuddy _for her mad beta skills and to _SissiCuddles _for being an amazing person.**

* * *

><p>"This game sucks!" House threw the remote onto the couch and sulked, how in the hell was he getting his ass kicked at Mario Karts by a five year old was beyond him. He had never lost this game, but then again, he'd always played against Wilson who has the adroitness of a hyperactive child with the attention span of a gold fish.<p>

Joshua was beaming with excitement, his dad never played this kind of games with him and when he did, his mother would always complain how those activities were rotting his brain. That's why he loved hanging out with uncle House, he was an adult but he would behave like most kids. It was so much fun!

"You only say that 'cause you're losing!" Joshua laughed while doing a victory dance as the words 'player two- wins' flashed the screen.

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"Am not!"

"Enough!" Cuddy's voice made itself heard across the room, she was looking at the two of them, arguing like children and she couldn't help but to smile. She was trying to look mad but the faces they made when they saw she was witnessing their 'discussion' were just too amusing not to giggle at.

House and Joshua, currently in the middle of attacking each other with pillows, froze on the spot, looking like two kids who had just been caught by their mother with their hands down the cookie jar.

"You two are helpless…" She chuckled . "… seriously, House, I could swear you were an adult but I'm not so sure anymore."

The little kid threw his pillow right in middle of House's face and ran to his aunt, looking for protection from the sore loser sitting on the couch.

"Help, aunt Lisa, help!" He grabbed her legs and hid behind them . "I beat uncle House in Mario Karts and now he's sulking like a baby!"

House rolled his eyes . "Sure, I'm the baby! You're the one hiding behind your precious aunt. Come out here and fight like a man!" He purposely gave a little too much emphasis to his last sentence, fist pumping the air for a twinge of a dramatic effect.

All his little act earned him nothing but an eye roll from Cuddy and a laugh from Joshua who, without missing a beat did the proper justice to his 'smarty pants' nickname, given to him by his favorite uncle, well, his secret favorite uncle.

"I'm just five! I'm no man yet." He giggled. "But I did beat you at Mario Karts, so, I guess you're no man either."

Cuddy had to prevent herself form rolling on the floor laughing, you could see from the look on House's face that he was both unamused and impressed by Joshua's remark.

"C'mon, children, enough videogames. It's time we do something else." Cuddy said as she shook her head slightly at House's behavior.

"But, moooom!"

"But, aunt Lisaaaaaaa!"

"Oh boy…" Eye roll.

Getting House and Joshua to stop picking at each other had not been easy, but after a couple of minutes of self testing her patience and hot chocolate bribery, she'd finally managed to reach an agreement that pleased both parties.

They agreed that, since the snow would be gone in a couple of days, they'd go to the park near Evelyn's house and try to take advantage of the few remaining snowflakes.

"I want to build the biggest snow man in the world!" Cuddy heard Joshua scream and couldn't help but to sigh quietly , what Ronald had said to her still haunting the back of her mind, she couldn't help but to wonder what it would be like to have a dark curly haired little boy running about causing havoc around the house.

She shook her head. No, she was not going down that path anymore, she was tired of having this feeling of sorrow running through her every time she saw or thought of something remotely related to children . It was enough, she was determined to just be happy. Happy because she had more than some people dream of having. Successful career? Check. Wonderful job? Check. Caring boyfriend? (Well, even if he tries to hid it) Check. Health? Check. (And not that bad of a body if she might say so herself. )

Her life wasn't so empty after all.

"Cuddy, hurry up, my butt is freezing!"

House's voice broke her out of her reverie. All that inner exposition had made her lose track of time, and the two gentlemen outside weren't that happy about it.

Putting her emerald green beanie on, she took a deep breath, and ran out the door.

Joshua was the one leading the trio down the street, he was hopping happily, trying to avoid the icy sidewalks while House and Cuddy walked slowly behind him.

They weren't speaking, enjoying the winter sounds surrounding them as they walked down the street to the ice skating ring. Of course that going out for ice skating had been Joshua's idea, House certainly did not enjoy the child's desire to make him drag himself three blocks down under the cold weather and possibly freeze to death but, all things considered, not being around the house once Cuddy's sister got there was something rather appealing and the possibility of watching Joshua fall on his ass repeatedly was also quite persuading.

Cuddy was enjoying the feeling of the cold air caressing her face, she could breathe again, that lump on her throat slowly fading away. She clung to House a little more, appreciating the warmth emanating from his body.

Joshua stopped walking for a bit, waiting for his aunt and uncle to catch up to him so they could walk together.

"Hurry up!" He called them out.

House looked at Cuddy mischievously and grinned, she knew he was up to something and, no surprises there, he started walking gradually slowly, looking at Joshua the whole time, who, in return, glared at House defiantly. It was cute watching House interact with the little boy, he certainly didn't get along with adults but when it came to children, House understood them and often behaved like them.

"Oh, C'mon!" Joshua said exasperated which only contributed to House's amusement even more.

"What? I'm crippled." House replied.

"You're doing it on purpose." Joshua huffed.

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"Am -"

"ENOUGH!" Cuddy chimed . "Seriously, you two are driving me nuts! House, you walk faster and Joshua honey, you need to take it easy, sweetie, we can't keep up. Now, both of you, behave!"

"Yes, Cuddles…"

"Yes, aunt Lisa…"

House and Joshua threw their tongues at each other but, as usual, House made a funny face at him, they laughed, and proceeded to walk like nothing had happened.

Cuddy rolled her eyes but smiled nonetheless, looking at the two children in front of her, not failing to see how Joshua's petit hand wrapped around House's as they walked to the skating ring.

"Be careful, Joshua!" Cuddy had to admit, seeing Joshua run to the ice ring made her a tad bit nervous, he was her responsibility after all.

"Don't worry ma'am, your boy is safe with me", said Angela, the teenage girl who, apparently, was one of the people in charge of accompanying the kids who had no one to skate with him - "I'll watch over him."

"Thank you, Angela", said Cuddy. "I really appreciate it."

Angela proceeded to go take care of the children currently on the ice whilst Cuddy went off to find House, who was waiting for her by the stands with a warm cup of coffee.

"Owe, aren't you sweet" Cuddy sat on the bench next to House, took the coffee cup from his hands and kissed him softly on the lips as a thank you.

"I don't appreciate the mocking, you know?" House said, mustering his oh so realistic hurt look on his face - "I have feelings!" - he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her closer to him, kissing the top of her head.

They stood there, looking over at Joshua, who was currently trying to win the ice skating race between all the attending kids.

After a very interesting story involving Wilson and leg warmers, they were wrapped around the comfortable silence they were already used to for a few moments.

Cuddy took a deep breath, she was suddenly reminded of her conversation with Ron, she had to tell House. Tell him, get this over with, and never live with this bump on her throat anymore.

"House…" His attention was drawn to her . "…I need to talk to you about something."

He raised his eyebrow, he knew that whenever she used that tone of voice something was clearly off.

"Okay… tell me."

Another deep breath. "Well, I… Remember I went to Dr. McFarland a few weeks ago?"

Now he was clearly worried. "Cuddy…"

"No, let me talk."

He nodded his head and kept quiet, examining her with his bright blue eyes, looking for an answer in hers.

"I went to Dr. McFarland and he did some tests… I got the results last week and-"

"Ahhhh!"

They were interrupted abruptly by a loud scream coming from the ice ring.

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><p><strong>You guys are going to hit me, aren't you?<strong>

**last chapter's answer: fado  
><strong>

**WINNERS:  
>-<em>Irene3691 : <em>3 points for ya!  
>-<em>partypantscuddy : <em>2 points for ya!  
>-IHeartHouseCuddy : 1 point for ya!<br>You guys are such smart munchkins** :')

Clue: When two bodies interact by exerting force on each other, these action and reaction forces are equal in magnitude, but opposite in direction.

**Ps: I'll be replying to all of your reviews from now on **


	8. Chapter 8

**hi~**

**before you start reading I want to thank "B" for leaving me all does hate comments, if it weren't for you I wouldn't have made it to 90+ reviews C: what a nice thing you did!**

**As usual, shout out to partypantscuddy for being an awesome beta even when I forget my own character's name.  
>Chapter dedicated to one amazing person who's not going to give up her dreams just because her mother is a pain.<strong>

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><p>Her heart was racing, everything around her seemed to move in slow motion. The air thickened, making it hard for her to breathe. The scream playing repeatedly in her head, almost like her mind was trying to seek something in it that would tell her that it wasn't who she knew it was.<p>

She ran, as fast as she could, leaving House limping hurriedly behind her.

Joshua was lying there, on the cold icy surface. He wasn't moving. A crowd of people were circling the space around him, blocking Cuddy's view from her nephew.

"Joshua!" She kept running to him, not even bothering with the lack of attrition beneath her feet. "Out of my way!" She ordered randomly for anybody crossing her path.

"I'm sorry, m'am! I'm so sorry." Angela stood next to Cuddy, her face as pale as the snow falling outside, she was supposed to be watching Joshua but, somehow, the kid had gotten separated from the group.

Cuddy completely ignored the girl, her attention was focused solemnly on the child lying motionless on the ground.

"Joshua, honey, wake up!" She was praying her little boy was okay, he had to be okay!

"Joshua, open your eyes!"

Nothing.

Her heart kept on racing, her blood pressure going through the roof. She ran her hand across his small face, repeating a mantra inside her head, _you have to wake up! wake up! please wake up! _

By the time House got there, he found her kneeled down next to Joshua's motionless body, tears covering her face. When she noticed his presence she clung to him forcefully, she clung to him like her life depended on it and he, he just held her, letting her cry, hoping that the little guy would be okay.

"Call 911!" House roared at a useless spectator who was just standing there like a moron.

"It's gonna be okay…" He whispered into her hear . "He's going to be okay…"

Truth was he wasn't so sure of it himself.

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><p>Three hours and a lot of shopping later, Evelyn, Julia and Matthew were back. The house was quiet, too quiet if you consider the children currently hanging around in there and, naturally, by children she meant House and Joshua. Julia giggled, oh, sometimes she cracked herself up.<p>

"Where is everybody?" Evelyn asked to no one in particular.

"Lisa probably took them for a walk…" Suggested Matthew, who was currently carrying a truckload of bags inside the house. "… God knows how Greg and Josh act around each other."

"Great, she took Joshua out with this cold." Julia's venom towards her sister was clear. She had always had this jealousy for her sister, Evelyn couldn't quite put her finger on why she felt that way, Lisa never gave her reasons to, on the contraire, she had always tried to be a good sister.

* * *

><p>House and Cuddy were still in the same position, after minutes of just sitting there on the ice. Standard procedure told them not to move someone who'd just bumped his head, so they sat there, embracing each other while Cuddy stroke the little boy's face.<p>

"Oow…"

Their attention was drawn to Joshua. He was waking up! Cuddy's lungs finally started working again, albeit still feeling like the weight of the word was pressed against her chest, seeing Joshua move was all she hoped for at that moment.

"Joshua!" The lump on her throat dissolved, vanishing part of her worry for her nephew.

"Un Lis.." He tried to stand up but House quickly told him not to and the little boy obeyed. House was checking his pupils and his reflexes while Cuddy was just coddling him, trying to make him feel a little bit better. He wasn't bleeding, at least not visibly bleeding, and that's what scared House the most. If Joshua had concussion it could end badly for him. Head trauma could be fatal if not detected early enough, especially if it resulted in internal bleeding.

House was mad. Not at Joshua for falling, he was a kid, kids didn't usually think about the consequences of their actions, they acted on impulse. And certainly not at Cuddy. He was mad at himself, for letting this happen. If only he had been watching him, if only he'd been paying attention when that moron of a girl should have been, maybe, just maybe, he could have saved Joshua and Cuddy from getting hurt.

He hated this, House was not one to start blaming himself for things, he never did. Even when he knew that, perhaps, certain events may or may not have occurred with some interference of his own, he never took blame for anything. Cuddy was the guilt driven one, not him. And he hated that he felt the need to take blame for what happened. He felt, God forbid, he felt protective of Cuddy, of Joshua even. He loved Cuddy, no shame in that; and the kid, well, considering the gene display, the kid wasn't that bad either.

House's thoughts were drawn back to reality when he noticed Angela was coming towards them, followed by two paramedics.

* * *

><p>"Where the hell are they? I've been calling Lisa for hours and she doesn't pick up the damn phone!" Julia was furious, her sister and her idiot boyfriend had disappeared to only God knows where with her son, her son!<p>

"Julia, don't be like that, I'm sure she just has her phone on silence or something." Evelyn tried to reason with her granddaughter, she didn't want to admit but she was also starting to worry about the whereabouts of her family. Suddenly, in an attempt to get some clue in where the trio could be, she thought of something . "Maybe Ronald knows where they are!" She said all of a sudden . "He was here when we left, maybe he knows something!"

Julia and Matthew both nodded at the older woman and, with no words spoken, they both made their way out the door, jackets forgotten on the hanger near the door.

Evelyn sighed, pleading silently for the safety of her grandchildren.

Oh, Lisa…

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><p>They rode in silence to the hospital, Joshua was feeling a lot better, he was actually sipping on some apple juice, happily content and oblivious to what was going on. Aunt Cuddy and uncle House had told him they were going to the hospital, he didn't like hospitals. Hospitals smelled. But they also told him that they were going to take pictures of his head, with a gigantic camera, just to see if the ice had hurt it, and that didn't sound that bad.<p>

He missed mommy and daddy though, maybe they could come see him get his head pictures taken.

"Aunt Lisa…" he dared shyly.

"What is it, sweetie?" Cuddy immediately focused on the boy, lifting her head from House's shoulder where she'd been resting it. "Does your head hurt?" She asked concerned.

"Yeah, a little bit but it's not that. I just… I want my mommy."

And that's when it was drawn to her that she hadn't called her sister yet. Julia was probably worried sick by now. Damn it! How could she have been so reckless. How could she let this happen?

Someone up there really hated her guts.

She quickly rummaged through her purse in search for her Blackberry.

21 missed calls from Julia, causing her phone to be almost out of battery, which had already turned off radio use for battery saving proposes. Seriously! She was out of battery? Great! That's all she needed right now. Just the damn cherry on top.

House lightly squeezed her knee, he knew there wasn't much he could do, especially because he was idiotic enough to leave his phone at home.

* * *

><p>"I'm sorry, Julia…" Ronald said apologetically. "… they just said they were going for a walk. I don't recall Lisa telling me where to specifically."<p>

Julie was fuming. She ran back into Evelyn's house, without even acknowledging Ron's endeavor to help.

Matthew wished the old man goodnight and left after Julia.

Ronald recovered to the warmth of his own home, picking up the phone as he made his way back to the living room, dialing Evelyn's number to ask for some small hint of what had just happened and why was Julia was screaming bloody Mary for her sister.

* * *

><p>Joshua was currently getting an MRI, after much shouting and insulting on House's part, the doctors finally agreed to submit the child to a head scan without his parents' consent.<p>

She stood there, at the reception desk, staring at the phone, wishing she didn't have to do what she was about to. Cuddy took a deep breath and dialed.

* * *

><p>"Where is he?" Julia stormed inside the pediatrics ward, followed by her husband who had a hopeless look on his face and Evelyn and Ronald not that far behind. She was furious, she hadn't stopped shouting ever since she had found out about the incident. Her rage towards her intensifying with each passing minute.<p>

"I'm sorry, ma'am. You need to stop yelling. This is -" A nurse, who didn't seem to be more than 20 years old, tried to prevent Julia from shouting, obviously, failing miserable.

"I don't care!" Julia beamed. "I need you to tell me where Joshua Evans is, right now!" She roared.

"Honey, please, stay calm." Matthew looked like a lost puppy, he too was failing miserably at trying to prevent Julia from having a stroke. He could swear there was a vein in her head ready to start gushing out blood everywhere.

"Don't" She lifted her hand to shush him. "Don't you start with that, Matthew Evans!"

The nurse looked helplessly at the scared looking man and then back at the screaming harpy. "Ma'am, please, I'll give you that information but you need to stay calm."

Julia just scoffed, looking at disdain to the nurse, signalizing her with her head that she had about 5 seconds to start moving her ass before she started screaming again.

* * *

><p>"No way, man! Batman trumps Super Man!"<p>

Cuddy was seated in one of the chairs inside the colorful hospital room, Joshua was laying in bed and House was trying to keep him awake.

"Super Man can fly!" Joshua affirmed with a 'duh' look on his face.

"Batman has the BATMOBILE!" House state with an appalled look on his face.

The boy rolled his eyes . "Big deal! Super Man is super strong. He'd crush Batman like a fly!"

Before House had the time to put some sense back into the kid's head, who was clearly just blabbering nonsense due to a severe head trauma, the doors opened abruptly and in stormed Julia, looking rather possessed.

"What the hell where you thinking, Lisa?" She didn't even bother to check on her child, Mathew was the one who pulled Joshua into a tight hug immediately after reaching his son.

"Julia, I'm so sorry!" Cuddy got up from her chair and approached her sister.

"Oh, you're sorry? You're sorry? Do you have any idea of what you just did? You could have killed him. You could have killed my son!"

Cuddy didn't know how she managed to stand after hearing Julia's poisoned words, she had no reaction, no comeback for what her sister had just accused he off. Her face turned pale and she lost control of her breathing.

House, who had instinctively gotten closer to Cuddy, was not in the mood for those atrocious accusations.

"Oh my God, do you hear yourself talk, woman?" Julia's fuming eyes were drawn to where he was standing, now closer to Cuddy, somewhat protecting her small frame from Julia's rage. "Seriously? He slipped, you moron! It wasn't her fault. He slipped! And for crying out loud, he's fine, not dying, at least not today. Surprisingly enough, he had two doctors, board certified by the way, taking care of him, who weren't complete idiots and handled things as they should. Something I don't think you and pansy boy over there, could be able to do."

Julia was shocked, enraged and shocked. "How dare you speak to me like that? He's my son!" Her voice was starting to get a little bit too acute for House's liking.

"Oh yeah? Then why are you here yelling at Cuddy like that while your son is lying in right there." He pointed his cane towards the hospital bed, where a scared looking Joshua was clinging to a stuffed bear.

Julia huffed. The nerve on that limping twat.

"My husband is taking care of him, I have to make sure he's safe around his aunt first." She turned to Cuddy once again. "Is this what you want, Lisa? You can't have children of your own so you go ahead and try to kill mine?"

"Julia!" Evelyn had just gotten inside the room, Ronald and her had stayed back to apologize to the nurse who had been quite shaken up after her encounter with Julia. She couldn't believe her ears.

The room went silent. Cuddy was on the verge of tears, the look on her face was killing every last bit self control left inside House.

Matthew was shocked and so was Ronald, whose heart tightened as he heard those malice words come out of Julia's mouth. Joshua was crying, gripping on his father's shirt.

House was red with anger, looking at Julia with murderous eyes. It took every bit of sanity and morality within him to prevent himself from doing something he'd surely regret.

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><p><strong>Love me? Hate me? Lemme know!<br>**

**How do you feel about some smut? eh? I think that after all this crap plus and with an high school reunion coming up, Cuddy needs some stress relief ;)  
><strong>PS: there won't be a clue for this chapter since there's only like 2 people participating since last chapter :c My usual reviews gave me the finger.


	9. Chapter 9

Hey... remember me? I was writing a fic? Saint Bernard's Mystery? No...?

...okay... fair enough.

I know I've been a very bad person, not updating for over a month BUT in my defense I've had a lot on my plate! Between hate reviews, meeting Hugh Laurie, going to Italy, kicking Sissi in my sleep and not being home for over 3 weeks, my muse has not been that inspired. If it makes you feel better this chapter was a big pain in the ass, each word was like pulling a tooth out without anesthetics at a shitty clinic in Guatemala.

After this though, the fun part begins and I get to kill people

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><p>Cuddy and Julia had never had a close relationship, well, they did once in time when they were just young girls. Cuddy remembered the nights they used to spend on the roof talking about whatever topic they could think of and just laying on the floor looking at the bright light of the stars shinning down on them. She loved her sister, she really did, but she couldn't help but feel that her love wasn't reciprocated. Every time she looked at Julia she could sense the hatred in her eyes, the unmistakable twitch of her lower lip and the coldness in her voice that broke her heart into a million pieces.<p>

That night, at the hospital, hearing her say those spiteful words without a single drop of regret afterwards, Cuddy felt like a part of her had died. She used to hope that someday their relationship would go back to what it used to be, however, after Julia's accusations, every last bit of hope vanished like smoke into the cold winter air.

Since that night Cuddy and House hadn't gone back to Evelyn's house, they chose to accept Ronald's offer to stay with him for a while, let things cool off a bit. Honestly, Cuddy saw no possibility for cooling off whatsoever. She was hurt! And she had a goddamn good reason to be hurt, mad even! She'd give everything not to feel that way towards her sister, she'd give everything to understand why Julia chose to hurt her like that.

Cuddy was so lost in thought she failed to notice House's eyes on her. She thought he'd be asleep by now but, just like her, he couldn't stop the turning wheels inside his head.

Slowly, not to startle her, House ran his hand along her bare arm, trying to provide her with some comfort, to let her know he was there for her. The sudden touch of heat brought her back to her senses; she turned her head so she could face him. Her heart melted. It was not usual to find that expression on Gregory House's face; in fact, he reserved it for special occasions and for very special people. The level of concern was apparent in his features, he was frowning slightly and his eyes we're staring at hers, trying desperately to find some sign that could tell him what she was thinking of.

"Are you okay?" He asked, his voice barely audible, while his hand kept caressing her arm.

Cuddy sighed - "Yeah…" She wrapped her right hand around his and lightly squeezed it. "…I'm just… thinking."

She tried to smile, but all the strength left in her body wasn't enough to fool him.

"Look…" He put his finger under her chin and turned her head to him once again. "…If you want we can go back to Princeton tomorrow and ditch the reunion. It'll be a shame to miss on all those juicy, and possibly image smudging, stories about teen Cuddy but I'm sure I'll find a lot blackmailing material in the future."

She noticed his attempt to lighten up the mood with some humor; she appreciated it even if she was too tired to engage on any kind of banter at that time. It made her smile a little bit though, and that was enough to give House some hope that she wasn't totally devastated about what happened with Julia.

"No.. As tempting as that offer sounds, I've come a long way to just drop out now. I want to go."

"You sure?"

After looking at each other for a few moments, Cuddy looked at the other end of the bedroom and took a deep breath. "Yes… I'm sure."

He wrapped his arms around her, kissing the exposed skin on her shoulder. The tingling sensation of his scruff traveling along her neck and shoulder tickled her skin and she immediately reacted to him, her head leaned back, allowing herself to let House sooth her, and he kissed it lightly, not missing the opportunity to get intoxicated by her scent.

They stood still, holding each other, for what seemed like an eternity. It felt good just being like that, no talking, no banter, nothing, just pure and very welcomed silence. His hand was absentmindedly stroking her arm while she found his other one, setting itself on top of it on her shoulder.

Cuddy's trembling voice was the only thing breaking the silent orb surrounding them.

"Do you think I shouldn't have… done what I did?"

She could be referring to a whole lot of "things" she had "done" throughout her life, but he knew what she meant. He knew what was plaguing her mind, what made her doubt herself and what was still, after all years passed, one of the memories Cuddy replayed over and over inside her head, trying to find some sense in the whole thing.

"Hey…" His embraced lessened, House brought both his hands to her face, framing it in his palm. "I don't ever want to listen to you say that. You did what you had to do. I don't want you fearing it anymore, okay? You were young and scared back then but now you're strong and confident, don't let it ever make you think less of yourself."

After all the time she has been with House, Cuddy still wasn't used to his sudden monologues of affection towards her. She knew she loved him, but when he spoke to her with that husky, low voice of his, she couldn't help but to feel like she was falling in love with him all over again. She kissed him hard and long, the two of the immediately clutching tight against each other.

His arms moved around her waist, while her hands rubbed all over his shoulders and back, pulling him closer to her. They never stopped kissing, the heat between them increasing as the air in their lungs ran short. When they finally let go of each other's lips, House pressed his forehead against hers, looking into her grey eyes, seeing in them the same amount of passion and desire she could probably see in his too. He kissed her lips, only this time it was slow and soft.

Cuddy's pink laced night gown soon came off, same with House's Led Zeppelin T-shirt.

Bare chests rubbing against each other, she hadn't put on a bra after her shower, he noted. She felt his blue eyes burning into her as he blatantly stared at her figure and what was now being revealed to him. She shivered; a tingle racing down her spine as a pulse of desire plummeted through her, the need to be touched, feel his fingers on her, lips over her own was both exciting and overwhelming, the way her body reacted to him even after all the time they'd spent together still the same as it was in the first time.

She bit her lip. Her hand clasped onto his zipper, pulling it down painfully slow, her movements arousing him further with each passing second.

He was finally freed from his pants, his boxers soon following them to the ground. Every item of clothing was now scattered around the room, well, all except her cream colored panties. House, with the same rush she'd used moments ago, took the hem of her underwear in between his hands and pushed it down her legs, pinning her to the mattress as he did so.

The panties were gone and forgotten. There was nothing separating them now.

She gasped, his hands were suddenly on her hips, pulling her back hard against him. She felt him pressing against her, hard between her legs, making her muscles contract, body so desperate to be filled.

House nestled himself between her legs, spreading them apart. Her whole body surrendered to him, moaning against his shoulder as she felt his hand slip up over her belly, grasping one of her breasts in his palm.

He kissed her passionately, their tongues dancing coordinately as so often they did. She could feel him hot and hard, pushing against her entrance. Her eyes opened, he was looking straight at her, with that blue of his eyes, the brightest she'd ever seen. Her mouth opened forming the words her heart had known for over 20 years.

"I love you."

With that she felt him enter her, inching deeper until he was completely buried inside of her. He thrust into her, creating a rollercoaster of emotions inside her, Cuddy's nails digging into his shoulder.

With each passing second the tension between their bodies increased, he was throbbing inside her, hammering against her with such need and desire that fluttered her heart with love for him.

They moaned in unison, their sounds echoing inside the room, and, after one final thrust, her climax finally hit her. Her muscles clamping down around him, making him explode inside her.

"I love you too."

* * *

><p>The next day came a little too soon. The bright light from the sun flooded the room Cuddy and House were sleeping in. She opened her eyes slowly, trying to postpone the beginning of the day as much as she could. Cuddy rolled slightly on the bed, looking for the warmth she was now so used to find there every morning, she frowned when all she felt was an empty space next to her, looking at the clock, she realized that it was almost 11 o'clock, and, as surprising as it sounded, she'd actually slept in late, something that didn't happen that often, maybe a consequence of their nightly activities, she thought to herself smirking.<p>

Against all her desires, Cuddy finally decided to get up and make her way to the kitchen; the smell of something delicious was floating through the air, awakening her food deprived stomach.

House and Ronald were at the table, sipping on some coffee and discussing the latest medical achievement on the oncology field. Both men smiled at the sight of her, House had to admit she looked absurdly cute with her bed hair hanging loosely from her head and her pink laced night gown covering just the right amount of skin on her legs.

"Good morning, darling!" Ronald said cheerfully. "Coffee?" He offered.

Cuddy was one of the people who believed that coffee was society's most effective anti-depressant, there was nothing like a warm cup of coffee every morning to help her survive those hectic days at the hospital when everybody seemed to lose their ability to do their jobs properly.

She sat next to House and they smirked at each other, the memory from the previous night still fresh in their heads.

"So, tonight is the big night…" Ronald said as he handed Cuddy her coffee. "…nervous?"

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't at least the tiniest bit worried." She replied, smiling nervously.

"Owe, I'm sure it'll be alright." The older man tried to calm her. "All those girls that used to give you a hard time will drop dead with jealousy."

House, who was slowly drifting away from the other resident's conversations, snapped his head up at the mention of the possibility concerning Cuddy being involved in what could be close to a cat fight.

"You had a 'hard time' with some girls? Did you steal any boy you shouldn't have, Cuddy?" His eyes were glistening with mischief.

Cuddy rolled her eyes. "I was a typical teenage girl, House, as much as that might surprise you. I had the occasional disagreements with my friends, nothing unusual."

"That didn't answer my question."

"What question?" She asked dismissively, grinning at him.

"Well…"-Their bystander spoke. "…I have to leave for a while but feel free to use the house as your own."

House smirked to himself, remembering oh so well how they were already comfortable enough to use the house as their own.

Ronald stood up and after kissing Cuddy on the cheek, left the room, leaving House and Cuddy alone with their thoughts.

Cuddy seemed distracted, she was sipping on her coffee, completely ignoring House's presence; she was lost within her mind. He didn't take it personal because he believed that even if George Clooney were in the room her response would be the same. Maybe she was still thinking about the whole thing that happened with Joshua and Julia, after all, cutting her interactions with her sister meant that she'd seldom see her nephew as well.

"House…" Cuddy spoke out of the blue.

He waited for her to continue but it seemed that she regretted what she was about say, which only intrigued him further.

"Yes…" He answered in the same tone of voice.

"Remember at the ring when Joshua fell? I said I needed to tell you something…"

He nodded.

"Well I…" She looked to the ground, trying to find the courage to continue. "… I haven't been completely honest with you."

House didn't know if he should say something or let her talk, from what he'd learned from Wilson's never ending rants and lectures about his relationship with Cuddy and people in general, when you don't know what to say, keeping your mouth shut is the wisest thing to do. He continued to look at her, waiting for her to speak.

"I've been meaning to tell you this sooner but… I guess I'm not as brave as I thought." She chuckled nervously, still looking at the ground.

House's mind was racing but he still kept quiet to let her finish.

"I went to see Dr. McFarland a few weeks ago…"

"I know that, you told me it was just a routine consult." House's attempts to keep silent weren't enough to fight the curious bug inside him, he was afraid of what she was going to say, afraid that she'd finally found someone else worthy of her. Afraid to be alone again.

"Yeah, I said that but… House, I…"

Her hesitation was dreadful to him but he still waited patiently for her to gather enough bravery to continue.

She took a deep breath and faced him.

"…I was pregnant." Cuddy said promptly.

House's face wasn't giving away what was going though his mind and that scared her. She was looking at him expectantly, waiting for him to tell her something, anything.

He wasn't keeping quiet on purpose, he really wasn't. He was trying to search for the appropriated words for that delicate situation. A million questions were racing inside the rational part of his brain and a million more were hiding inside his irrational half. Why did she use the past tense? Was? As in not anymore? Did she end it intentionally? Did she abort it? Why hadn't she told him about it, or better yet, why hadn't he at least got a hint of what was happening to her?

"I'm sorry…" His words were alien to her. She'd expected everything from him, she'd been preparing herself for any kind of outcome but an 'I'm sorry' was certainly not predicted.

"What? Why would y-"

"I'm sorry you had to go through that again, alone." He was avoiding looking at her which only made her more confused.

"I should have told you, there was no way you could have guessed." She was speaking softly, still dumbfounded by his reaction.

House finally turned his attention to Cuddy, he looked at her and spoke. "One of the reasons you've kept me around all these years was so you wouldn't have to go through this kinds of situations by yourself. I was so busy trying to keep you from waking up one day and realizing I wasn't the person you needed that I forgot to actually pay attention to your tangible needs. Yeah, I might be a little upset you chose not to mention this to me until now but I can't blame you for thinking I'd run away at the first obstacle.

She didn't know what to say, it wasn't his fault and it certainly wasn't like House to feel guilty for anything.

"If you want we can try again… "

She truly felt loved in that moment, House the man everybody labeled as insensitive and unable to feel any sort of empathy towards another human being, was willing to overlook his own fears just to give her what she wanted.

She smiled shyly. "I can't…"

He was confused.

"I know I'm not father of the year material but I'm willing to do this for you, I can try."

"No, I mean, I can't have children… ever."

He realized what she was trying to say and nodded, taken aback. What was he supposed to say now, he wasn't expecting her to reveal that. He certainly did not want to say the wrong thing, he didn't know how to react to this news.

"I'm sorry." House opted to say.

"All those times you are in fact guilty for something you never apologize, but now, when you had no way to prevent this from happening, you've said you're sorry twice in the last two minutes."

She decided that crying and moping wasn't going to solve anything, she felt relieved she'd finally let House know about the miscarriage and her inability to carry a pregnancy full time. Cuddy didn't feel like crying, it still hurt for sure, but the pang of pain she used to feel just by thinking of it wasn't there a any longer.

He was surprised with how great she was dealing with all that, he'd expect some tears at least, but Cuddy proved to be stronger than he thought.

"You're okay with this?" House hugged her.

"Yeah, I'm okay. I've accepted this. I'm happy with you and the vision of just you and me in the future isn't that bad." She smiled.

They took advantage of their alone time at least two more times before they realized they had a party to go to.

* * *

><p>House sat in the sofa looking absentminded at the tv, the flashing images of yet another episode of his favorite trash show weren't sufficient to capture his attention. He had a lot on his mind, Cuddy's revelations that afternoon had given him more than enough to mull over.<p>

Cuddy, still trying to get her hair to stay correctly brushed, was looking at her reflection in the mirror and remembered the last time she'd pampered herself for a Saint Bernard's event, her prom. It seemed surreal to look back all those years, to look back at all the small battles she'd won over the times.

After the incident, she'd sworn to herself that she would never set foot in Saint Bernard's again, it had been a vain promise, she knew deep down inside she would have to come back and face her fears once in time.

She ran her hand through the silky fabric of her dress, smoothing it underneath her palms. The blue tone of it reflected in her eyes made them brighter than their usual color, it was a simple fitted dress than clung perfectly to her curves. Her cleavage was displayed through the low cut v-neck that stopped just above her breasts, not too high nor too low, simply classy. She'd decided to let her hair down, with soft curls cascading down her shoulders and falling perfectly in her mid back.

She looked at her reflection in the mirror and smiled, the years may have done their damage on her face but she certainly couldn't complain, except for the occasional wrinkles around her eyes, there weren't that many changes to her features. She looked older, yes, but she was gracefully older.

"I'm ready."

House rose from the couch and took a few moments to appreciate the view, looking at Cuddy with a very satisfied grin on his face.

"You look stunning."

She smiled. "Thank you, you aren't looking so bad yourself." Kissing his cheek, she leaned on him, crossing her harms with his and leading him to the door.

* * *

><p>So, I wrote smut... and I hated every single moment of it but I wrote it anyway because of YOU.<p>

Thank you so much to ; SissiCuddles; Alltheloveinthe; partypantscuddy (also an excellent beta reader); LiaHuddy; JDK; IHeartHouseCuddy; nanaKK; You're Fabulous; Abby; Alex; HuddyGirl; Irene3691 and Anons for their wonderful, wonderful reviews on my last chapter. I hope you all find money on the ground.

Ps: I noted that there's a mention of Rachel on ch.1... OBLIVIATE!


	10. Chapter 10

Cheerio!

I've been avoiding this fic like the plague, I must adimt. My bad. I have like (roughly) 255645956 fic ideas that I want to write down but I never do cause I feel guilty about SBM and then I just end up resenting it.

I'm human.

I bajilion thanks to partypantscuddy who tortures herself, willingly, in a god forsaken way just so I can post this little story for your reading "pleasure".

I wrote this at 3am.

_Alons-y, Alonzo! _

* * *

><p>Arriving at the place where she had once been practicing for cheering squad gave her the most pathetic nostalgia feeling ever.<p>

Lisa Cuddy wasn't one of those women who just stood in front of the mirror pointing out every single flaw they thought blemished them before their eyes; no, she was a woman who knew how attractive she was, a woman who felt confident in her own shoes, confident enough to squash any man who dared stand between her and her goals. Just ask Dr. Ramsey, the poor unfortunate soul who had the misfortune of being her only competition for her current job.

But this was high school.

This was acne and puberty. Sneak outs and make outs. Jocks and dorks. All over again.

Ugh.

As she walked across the lobby, the flashes from years ago kept rushing through her eyes, making it difficult not to stumble forward and fall flat faced on the floor. How she wished that it was just one of the hospital's fundraisers, it would be so much easier to deal with horny little old men than it was with people you were once obliged to spend the most awkward years of your life with.

She was so not in the mood for this.

UGH.

An what was up with the décor? Now seriously, mixing purple and red is never a good idea. Never. And if you had glitter to the mix, you have yourself the worse possible combination in the world.

Speaking of horrible combinations, Cuddy was reminded of her high school nemesis, Lisa Cashmore. Now Lisa was the tackiest, trashiest version of Dolly Parton she'd ever had the delight to meet, and that was saying something. You know how sometimes you come across someone who's just the tiniest bit jealous of you and tries to obsessively beat you at everything you do? Well, multiply that for one hundred and you got yourself your own Lisa Cashmore. Seriously, Cuddy didn't consider herself to be a person that held a grudge against someone else, or to be vindictive for that matter, but if there was anyone in this world she'd like to smash their teeth in with a stapler, it was Cashmore.

…and the bitch just had to have a similar name to hers.

Ugh.

Cuddy had to admit that at some point in her life, she had actually thought she was one of her best friends.

Cringe.

How deluded was she back then? She thanked God every day she had matured enough to realize that leaving under Lisa Cashmore's radar was insane and possibly mentally damaging.

Ugh.

There she was, standing next to a rather handsome and successful doctor with ravishing blue eyes, looking rather dashing in a designer dress herself, but still feeling like an awkward teenager walking into high school for the first time.

"You ready, mistress?" House spoke, in his best Sean Connery impersonation.

"Yeah…" Cuddy didn't really want to push the doors open, oh no. It was like walking into a slaughter house willingly! And who the hell, in their right mind, would walk themselves into a slaughter house wearing Valentino for heaven's sake?

UGH.

As the two doors slid open and House and Cuddy stepped inside the gym, every head turned to them.

"This is going to be fun" House commented, amused by the reaction they were getting from people; he'd promised Cuddy he'd be on his best behavior but that didn't mean he couldn't at least have some fun.

Cuddy was trying to look as confident as possible, scanning the room for familiar faces. She looked around and immediately spotted one of the few people that made it worth putting up with this reunion altogether.

Silvia Facinelli.

If anyone knew any embarrassing stories about her it was Silvia. They used to be best friends in high school and they still got along pretty well afterwards. Cuddy didn't have that many friends now, she used to be quite the popular girl back then, but now, she realized that she was okay with having just a few people in her life that she knew she could always count on. Thinking back to all those times in her life when she was in need of support, Silvia would always be there for her, even if they hadn't called for months or hadn't actually seen each other in years, she'd always come.

"Woah, that was quite an entrance!" Silvia spoke as she joined House and Cuddy.

"It's so good to see you!" Cuddy was genuinely happy to see her friend, the last time they'd spoken to each other, Silvia called saying she was moving to Paris and that was 6 months ago.

"It's good to see you too, Lisa" Silvia reciprocated the hug, shifting her attention towards House, she said "And I see you brought Limpy McGrumpy with you!" she winked "How nice!"

"Oh, go hump a tree, Silvia!"

House and Silvia would rather chop something off than admit that they actually liked each other. They would always be at each other's throats, no matter the situation, and they both enjoy every minute of their school yard fights.

Silvia had always been very passionate about the things she believed and stood for. She was a vegetarian ever since Cuddy could remember (hence the hump a tree comment), she loved music, art and could quote Shakespeare by heart. She was different from everybody and that's what made her special.

"Always so nice, Dr. House."

"Part of my charm."

They were both smirking at each other and Cuddy didn't know if she was annoyed or amused by the two "adults" in front of her.

"Anyway.." Silvia started making her way to the bar, with Cuddy and House following willingly after her ".. is this place the epitome of shabby or what? I can't say I'm surprised Cashmore was the one who came up with this."

Oh yes, Silvia hated Lisa Cashmore too.

"I didn't know she'd be the one organizing the reunion."

"C'mon Lisa, her ego needs stroking every once in a while" Silvia grinned.

"Oh God, is it girl trash talk time?" House asked with the usual whiney voice "If I knew this was going to happen I would have brought Wilson…"

"Missing the boyfriend already, Greggy?"

House shuddered, looking at Silvia with a murderous stare, sometimes, Cuddy didn't know how she got away with the stuff she said to him.

"First of all…" House started "… say Greggy again and I'll beat you. I don't usually hit women but I'll make an exception just for you. Secondly, I don't think I'm the one missing Jimmy here…"

Oh yes, Cuddy thought, Silvia and Wilson had had a thing going on between them when she was still living in Jersey, they didn't go out for long but they really seem to like each other. Unfortunately, they broke up once Silvia got the change to work for a Theatre Company in London, leaving a puppy eyed Wilson and a $50 poorer House behind.

Lost within her mind, Cuddy quickly tuned off the pointless argument happening between the world's most childish adults. Seriously, once those two were at it, you were in for at least thirty minutes of unbearable ennui.

Looking around, trying to guess who was who, Cuddy spotted Lisa Cashmore gracing the room with her presence, arm in arm with…

_GEORGE SMITH?!_

She probably said that out loud cause House and Silvia both looked at her like she was some kind of a psycho.

"Woah there, Cuddy!" House moved towards her, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Holy shit! Is that Lisa Cashmore and George Smith?!" This time it was Silvia's turn to get dazed by the, apparent, hit couple of the night.

"Seriously you need to stop-"

House scrunched his face and closed his eyes as Silvia's screechy voice rang inside his head.

"Can you believe the nerve of that creature? Lisa, if you want to repeatedly stab her in the eye, I'll gladly provide with an alibi. And a fork."

House was stunned to silence , for reals! Gregory House was out of words. He was caught up in the dark side of the feminine world with absolutely no idea how to get out of that scary and bottomless pit of doom.

"Omg, Lisa Cuddy is that really you?"

It took every bit of self control in Cuddy for her not to punch that woman in the face, everything about her annoyed the crap outta her, even her breathing did a number on her.

With the best smile she could come up with, Cuddy let herself be embraced by the person she was mentally murdering inside her head.

"It's really me…" Cuddy said with a sigh, looking at her, trying to find something she could compliment on without feeling like she was insulting her own personal taste "Lisa Cashmore… wow… nice… to see you."

Who the hell was she kidding? There was absolutely nothing on that woman she could possibly compliment, and even if there was, Cuddy's inner teenager was reminding her of the girl code to high school survival: Rule no. 87 - 'Anything your enemy ( slash girl who's being a bitch to you and that you absolutely hate) is wearing or doing is hideous. You see that girl sporting the purse you were eyeing at the mall? Now you hate it.' It was childish to think that way but Cuddy just couldn't help it.

"Oh, it's Lisa Cashmore-Smith now…"

Oh Lord, she hyphened her name. Who does that?!

"… George and I got married after college…"

She went to college? Now there's something shocking.

"… we just couldn't live without each other! Oh and who's this…?" Lisa's attention was drawn to House, who was now standing next to Cuddy, observing the interaction between the two women.

"Gregory House, Dr." He introduced himself, shaking Lisa's hand.

Cashmore, or should I say Cashmore-Smith, seemed legitimately impressed by the blue eyed man, something that gave Cuddy that awesome sense of pride you get from someone else's jealousy.

"Nice to meet you, doctor." She grinned at Cuddy "Now I know why you were so keen on going to med school."

_Breath in, breath out Lisa… you can do this._

Long story short: Cuddy and George dated in high school, he was the captain of the football team, who believed he'd someday provide for his stay at home wife and kids, she was the ambitious cheerleader who wanted a career and a life. Needless to say they broke up once Cuddy went to med school, but rumor has it Lisa had long since spoiled George's ideas with rumors about Cuddy, we'll get to that later. So, yeah, you get the picture.

"Oh hey Lisa Cuddy, I never thought you'd come back" George finally made his appearance after re-bonding with the two cronies that used to follow him around like idiots.

"Now dear, it's Lisa House now…" She grinned, looking at her husband and trying to fix a few messy locks of his hair, clearly showing a bit too much intimacy just to piss Cuddy off.

"Actually, we're not married, it's still just Lisa Cuddy… Dr. Lisa Cuddy." She corrected.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I just deduced you were married… "

House was still just a bystander, admiring Cuddy's self-control over Cashmore-Smith's jabs. He finally stepped up, after deciding that bailing Cuddy out of jail wasn't something he'd look forward to.

He extended his arm to George, not before putting his arm around Cuddy's waist.

Who knew he'd be the one being polite tonight? Oh the things you do for love… and gratitude sex…

"Dr. Gregory House, pleased to meet you." Not only did he put a little too much strength into the handshake, he also added an intsy bitsy touch of sarcasm to his voice.

"George Smith, the ex-boyfriend."

House could swear Cuddy was on the verge of a stroke, he could feel all her muscles tense under his palm.

Thankfully Silvia, who had been watching from afar, joined the group, and not being someone who particularly enjoyed formalities, stepped in the conversation.

"So Lisa, I see you're still the bitch I knew and loved. How's life treating you?" she sipped on her lemon vodka.

Cashmore rolled her eyes, she obviously wasn't amused by Silvia's comment .

"Silvia, how wonderful you're here. Too bad you didn't change since last time." glares were exchanged and then she added "Well, George honey, we should get to the other guests.. I'll see you later."

The couple excused themselves, leaving the trio behind.

"Geroge, honey…" Silvia mocked with her best snotty house wife voice "we should get to the other guests…" She snorted "Acting like this is her personal ball or something…"

Cuddy and House looked at each other amused, thankful for Silvia's not so cheerful personality.

"… I'll tell where she can shove her ego…"

Cuddy took Silvia by the hand, leading her to their table "C'mon..."

* * *

><p>This was supposed to be wa(aaaaaa)y longer but I took pity on you. Next chapter, who is halfway written btw, (leave it to my muse to grace me with her presence AFTER school starts) I'll give away a very good hint about Cuddy's secret. Any guesses?<p>

Oh and, 4 reviews on the last chapter? stawp it u guise ur overwhelming me with luv.

Ps: cookies for the people that guess how much of my high school experience in in this. Hint: I really, really hate a certain someone's parents for having an impeccable good taste in names.


	11. Chapter 11

I was abducted by aliens.

_Please bear in mind that this chapter is not beta read. I wanted to put this up as soon as possible so I decided not to run it through my beta this time (don't worry Syd, you're still my number one.)_

This chapter is divided into two parts, happening simultaneously.

* * *

><p>I looked at her from afar, the years have certainly been kind with her. She was laughing. She has the most beautiful smile I've ever seen.<p>

Her hair is still dark as I remember, but not as curly, the vast juba was tamed and turned into a silky waterfall of wide waves. I liked it. I hope she glances my way but at the same time I'm content with being invisible.

I keep starring at her beautiful face, I take advantage of the moment to examine the people around her also. She sat with Silvia Facinelli at her right, no surprises there. Lisa Cashmore at the same table and that idiot, George Smith, is there too. Next to him is Evan McCaunaghy being as socially awkward as he'd been all through high school. Jess and Marcia were quietly listening to every word Lisa smith said, nodding enthusiastically every once in a while so as she would feel like there was anyone at that table that cared about her life as much as she thought people would.

I turn my attention to the man sitting next to Lisa. He was tall and scruffy looking and by the way he had his arm round her chair it was no mystery that he was probably her husband. She looked at him, her cheeks were slightly red, I noted. She smiled at him in the same way she used to smile at me, there was no formality or politeness in that smile, I could see only love and admiration in it. That used to be me, her bright blue eyes only used to light up for me and only me. Such amount of admiration and interest was only for me. Not anymore, I note.

Her expression changed, even from afar her eyes told me all I needed to know. She was on the verge of tears, I was sure. Oh, how I wish I could make the pain stop! I couldn't then and I can't now.  
>She ran and for a split second I consider going after her but I hold my ground, I have to wait, if I want things to go as planned I have to settle for being in the shadows, for now...<p>

_A few moments earlier..._

"Ugh, I can't believe she put us in the same table! Lisa, dear, do me a favor .." - Silvia took one of the forks lying neatly on top of the red napkin - "... the minute that harpy shows up, take this and stab me in the eyes... and rip off my tympanic while you're at it."

Cuddy was looking at her with a very amused grin on her face, if there was one thing she missed about high school was Silvia's humour. She had a very distinctive dark sense of humour that was unappreciated by most people but that Cuddy was very drawn to, in a weird way, Silvia had a lot in common with House, f.e. they'd both look insulted if she ever said that to them, then they'd both snicker and proceed to mock the other whilst sounding as full of themselves as one can possibly sound.

"I think I'd rather rip her eyes out rather than yours..."Cuddy replied.

Silvia faked a gasp, putting her hand over her heart, feigning tears with overly dramatic sob "Lisa... I think that's the most beautiful thing you've ever said to me..."

Cuddy just rolled her eyes.

Meanwhile House was just coming back from the bathroom, not missing the looks on both woman's faces.

"Ooh, goody! What did I miss?"

"Oh nothing, old fella... we were just-" Silvia was about quirky remark about her and Cuddy being secret lesbians that were just coming up with a plan to get rid of him, when the rest of the group joined the table.

As Lisa Smith sat down, Cuddy took her fork and smirked at her best friend, who was on the borderline of laughing hysterically, leaving a very confused looking House starring at them.

Half an hour through dinner, Lisa Smith was still blabbing about her "fabulous" life in the suburbs and was currently in the middle of telling her engagement story .

Silvia was in the process of finishing her second drink, and as the bottom of the glass peaked through, the fork thing wasn't looking like such a bad idea after all.

"How about you, Lisa?" - Smith asked Cuddy, finally putting an end to her self appreciation monologue - "How did you and Greg meet? You are so different from each other I find it hard to believe you have anything n common."

Cuddy instantly squeezed House's hand, preventing him from reacting to Lisa's provocation. As much as he wanted to, he refrained himself from insulting her, and chose to answer the question instead.

"We met at the library." He simply stated.

Cuddy looked at him and smiled knowingly, little did Lisa know that House was not telling the whole story. They did in fact meet at a library, their university library to be precise, but that had been over 20 years ago. A lot had happened after their first encounter and the ironic thing was, it weren't nothing romantic at all. They had their first, and definitely not last, fight ever.

Well, I guess that is, in a way, romantic if you're House and Cuddy..

While the other people at the table smiled at the couple's interaction, knowing that the story wasn't quite finished yet, by the way House and Cuddy were smiling cheekily at each other, Lisa was unimpressed.

"That's it? You met at a library?" - she snorted - "I'm surprised you even set foot in a library after what happened..."

The temperature of the room dropped and everybody went silent.

Cuddy's smile vanished and her face went pale. The memories of that night invading her, flooding her mind with all the horrifying details she tried so hard to forget.

House looked like he was ready to kill someone, grabbing Cuddy's hand, desperately trying to transfer some strength into her.

"What? Why is everybody looking at me like that? You all know what happened. She should be the one being judged not me..." With that snotty and tone of voice and without a single drop of regret, Lisa hurled another dart into Cuddy's already broken heart.

"You bitch! How-" Silvia was ready to rip Lisa's head off but her angry shouts her muffled by Cuddy's quiet plea.

"Silvia, please, I'm okay..." She took a deep breath and turned her head towards the bitter woman, never once averting her gaze from hers.

"I did what had to be done. If I hadn't... we would have all died."

Lisa snored "If that's what you say to yourself every night, suit yourself. I just don't know how you live with yourself."

Every last ounce oh strength she had vanished into thin air. Cuddy quickly got up, ready to run away from the memories, holding back the tears threatening to fall.

"I did all I could to save my brother!"

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><p>I'm sorry for keeping you waiting for so long but I have a very serious case of acute <em>writerius blokis. <em>It's a serious disease, Google it!

Thank you for all your comments and PMs, feedback is my vicodin. And if you're still sticking with this story after all these time... God bless your soul.


	12. Chapter 12

Hello there!

Thank you so much for all your wonderful reviews, they make feel all warm and fuzzy. And a special thanks to "jay" who just started reading this fic and took his time to review every single chapter.

As always this chapter was beta read by partypantscuddy thks bb!

Happy Holidays!

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><p>Cuddy ran, as fast as she could, away from the memories. She should have known that people would start talking about it eventually, something like that doesn't just disappear, no, something like that chases you forever, it engraves itself in your mind and plagues you every day.<p>

She sighed, she was standing outside, it wasn't snowing anymore but the streets still had the remains from the previous nights. The cold air was stabbing her lungs like a knife, she didn't have her jacket on and the wispy fabric of her dress wasn't enough to keep her warm.

Coming to this reunion was a mistake, she thought she could do it, maybe coming back would help her heal, but it only made it worse.

She never wanted to hurt anybody.

Especially not her brother.

She heard a ruffling noise behind her and she quickly turned around, facing towards the intriguing sound.

"Oh, it's you..."

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><p>After Cuddy left the room, it didn't take House long to go after her.<p>

Once she told him what happened his idea of her changed. His respect and love for her grew. Someone who has been through what she has been, managing to accomplish what she had accomplished, was most certainly not an idiot.

He almost guessed this would happen, some annoying little voice inside his head kept telling him that maybe the reunion was too much for Cuddy to handle.

Sometimes even he forgot that she wasn't Superwoman.

He searched the hallways looking for any sign of her, failing to find her anywhere. House sighed frustrated. Where the hell could she be?

He heard someone inside one of the supposedly empty classrooms, he couldn't quite make up what it was being said or by whom but, given what had just happened, he assumed it was Cuddy rambling frustrated to herself.

He was _wrong_.

* * *

><p>Silvia wanted to hurt Lisa Smith.<p>

She actually wanted to punch her in the face. Hard.

Her knuckles were turning white from the way she was grasping onto the table and if she hadn't made the conscious decision to just get up and leave that moron infested room, that bitch would have gone through a seriously bad time.

The world was a loony bin and she was getting fed up with all the shit people in it, currently stealing her precious oxygen and occupying her space. These kinds of situations were the reason why she kept her social interactions to a minimum.

The only thing preventing her from hopping on the first plane back to London was her best friend, whom she seldom got to see.

Lisa Cuddy did not deserve this, and the more Silvia thought about it, the more infuriated she felt.

London had been her escape route, her warm and cosy blanket she could hide underneath of, when she wanted to avoid all the maddening problems of the real world, a place where due to the sheer numbers you will encounter anything and everything, from the very best to the very worst humanity has to offer. In the scant few months she spent there for the first time, she'd seen people do heartless things to defenceless and crippled homeless people, and incredible displays of compassion for total strangers. It was home.

Home away from home, if that'll ever make sense.

But she felt guilty, guilty for not being there for Lisa. And she couldn't leave her best friend alone. They had pinky promised to each other to never, ever leave each other's side.

Silvia didn't know for how long she'd been walking, but once she regained full control over her senses, she realized that she'd moronically managed to get herself lost.

'Ah, great! Bloody brilliant, way to go, you stupid idiot!' She mentally scolded herself, in a very weird American-slash-British accent she couldn't get rid of.

She looked around, hoping to see anything familiar. Her eyes fell upon a dark figure standing in front of her and she could swear her heart stopped beating for a moment...

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><p>Evan McConaughey sat alone at the table. After Lisa Smith's not so appropriated comments and Lisa Cuddy's sudden disappearance there was not much that could restore any kind of conversation between the remaining occupants of the table. Everyone left, one by one, leaving him behind, not paying him any attention, much like in high school.<p>

He sighed.

The music was blasting behind him, no one seemed to have noticed the tension that fell upon that table a few moments prior, people kept dancing and laughing as one would do in a high school reunion.

He didn't like parties, he never did. For starters there usually were people attending them which was instantly anti climatic and then, there was the music, the food, the petty conversations... ugh, nah, too much hassle.

He much rather stay at home with a good Agatha Christie novel and a bottle of cheap wine, thank you very much.

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><p>George was drunk out of his ass. Nowadays that was pretty much his natural state; he wasn't an alcoholic, absolutely not! Being an alcoholic meant he had a drinking problem... which he clearly hadn't. He simply enjoyed the occasional drink... a lot. No, he was definitely not an alcoholic.<p>

I mean... he did drink a few shots of tequila before arriving the reunion but, hey! Who in that place hadn't? Right?

Reunions sucked big time. The entire time you have to pretend you loved your life, you have to pretend you achieved all those goals you promised yourself you'd accomplish after four years of high school, which you clearly haven't cause you're still the same fuck up you were back then, well, now you were an older, crankier and possibly less horny fuck up, but still... alcohol in your system helped ease the pain of, albeit not willingly, celebrating your own failures.

He stumbled along the corridors for what seemed like hours, sporadically glancing upon the hanged pictures on the wall, dreaming about his glorious days of being the captain of the football team.

He kept walking and walking, not wanting to stop, his legs felt weird like he'd lost control of them but his head had a different opinion, everything was spinning around him so he stopped...

... he stopped one time and one time was enough.

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><p>Lisa Smith was standing in front of the mirror, starring at her own reflexion, aged by time and tiredness. She looked good but it wouldn't last long, she feared.<p>

How dare those people judge her? She only said what everybody was thinking about, she only said what everybody else seemed too scared to say.

She knew the truth would come bite her in the ass someday, but it wouldn't be today. No, she couldn't let that happen, after years of hiding it, of keeping it inside of her she couldn't let it be known. The truth burned her, it gnawed her sanity.

Suddenly it came to her, that one thought she wouldn't dare thinking about if she weren't that desperate... could she do it? She had to. Taking a deep breath, she straightened her dress and left the bathroom, she was a woman on a mission.

* * *

><p>Some time passed, everybody was enjoying themselves still. The music was blasting, people were laughing and dancing, having a good time.<p>

Cuddy, House, Silvia, George and Lisa were nowhere to be seen.

A scream. A single excruciating scream froze everyone to their spot. Where did it come from? Was someone hurt? People questioned themselves and others but no one seemed to have an answer.

House joined the crowd, his face was drained from its usual tanned tone, leaning on his cane more than usual, he limped through the room. His blue eyes scanned every face, looking for Cuddy, but he couldn't find her. His heart was pounding, he could feel his blood boiling underneath his skin, he couldn't believe what had just happened to him, he was truly terrified... He needed her.

Cuddy was rushing through the hallways, her mind replaying every micro second of what'd just happened, like it was chasing after her.

She shouldn't have let that happen.

'I need House' - she repeated - 'I need him'.

After just a few moments, when people were starting to resume the festivities, brushing off the scream as some weird animal noise, a dark cloud of bad luck fell upon everyone.

"He's dead!"

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><p>WUUT~~<p>

eheh leave a review on your way out? :3


	13. Chapter 13

Two updates in less than a week?! LOVE ME.

You guys have been supporting me so much with your reviews and even Tumblr and Twitter messages that I wanted to get this up as soon as possible - you deserve a little treat :)  
>This chapter is a little shorter than usual I hope that's okay.<p>

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><p>Cuddy was trying to get through the crowd of hysterical people but was failing miserably, her petit body and lack of strength were major disadvantages.<p>

House was nowhere to be seen and she was panicking, at what point in her life had she become one of those needy women who hyperventilated every time their boyfriends got out of their reach? She hated depending so much on House but at the same time she loved it, she often wondered if that was any indication of mental instability or just normal for a woman in love, nevertheless she was sure it was required some years of therapy to figure out.

"HOUSE!" She called out, hoping for some response. "HOUSE!" She tried again but all she heard were the voices from the people around her.

Her heart was racing and she felt like passing out. Taking a deep breath, she tried to calm herself down; smacking her face against the floor wouldn't help her situation at all.

House too was looking for Cuddy, he thought he heard her calling his name but with all the noise of idiot people praying for God around him, she'd most likely not hear him.

He sighed, on the outside he looked like he was totally in control of the situation, keeping a stern look on his face, but on the inside he was scared shitless. Like, what the fuck had just happened to him?

And now, to make things even worse, he had no idea where the hell was Cuddy. He had the slight bitter feeling in his stomach that usually appeared when he didn't know if Cuddy was okay or if he thought she was hurt in any way. Yes, it was insanely clingy of him but he was sure that even if they were not dating he would still feel the same way. Not that he would ever admit this to anyone but he has always had a soft spot for Cuddy, even if his actions reflected otherwise. Dare he say, he was absolutely, undeniably, completely in love with that woman.

Feelings sucked.

After a few more seconds of searching through the crowd, his eyes fell upon her. House let out a breath of relief and called her name. She immediately turned her face towards the sound of his voice, and he had to admit it made him feel slightly proud when he saw how quickly her expressions changed.

Cuddy walked as fast as her wobbly legs allowed her, wrapping her arms around House as soon as she came in contact with him.

"Oh, God, House! I was so worried about you." Cuddy said, the exhaustion from the night's events apparent in her voice.

House shut his eyes, allowing himself a moment of weakness when she wasn't looking, he hated how fragile she looked, she was clinging to him on the verge of tears, he hated how defenseless he was when it came to fighting off her pain.

He hugged her closer to him, lightly brushing his hand through her silky hair.

"I'm okay, no need to be worried." He chose to say.

Without letting go of their embrace, Cuddy looked up at him "I was so scared, House, I panicked… someone got hurt, I don't know what happened…"

House interrupted.

"Cuddy, listen to me, I'm okay and you're okay. That's all that matters."

She nodded.

"C'mon, let's get the hell out of here…"

"We can't!"

"Why not, Cuddy? I can't stand being in this place any longer"

"Well, I need to go find Silvia and make sure she's okay, she could be hurt."

House just scoffed "I'm sure Silvia's fine! She can take care of herself, she's practically a man, well, sort of, but you get my drift."

Even though she was relieved he was okay, Cuddy couldn't help but to feel a little bit irritated with House's behavior. Sure, he was eager to leave, so was she considering her situation, but he could at least care a little bit for other people's well being not just his and hers (even if she felt truly loved when he was all worked up, acting like an alpha dog protecting his pack - in under no circumstances she would ever mention this to him, by the way.)

"House, please…" - she was using her secret manipulative tone she knew he was too big of a softie to say no to.

He rolled his eyes.

"Fine, we'll find Silvia but then we go home".

Cuddy kissed him lightly on the cheek.

"Thank you. I just need to know if she's okay… they say someone got hurt and I…"

House grabbed her hand and squeezed it. "I know… c'mon, let's go find the True Hugger."

It didn't take long to find Silvia, she was sitting alone at the bar, sipping on a vodka martini. Cuddy knew almost instantly something was wrong, her best friend looked pale, standing motionless, staring blankly at the poster frames on the left of the bar.

"Hey…" She put her hand on Silvia's back, trying to get her attention. "… are you okay?"

Silvia was slightly startled by her friend, she was so lost in thought she didn't realize Cuddy was next to her.

"Hey, Lise… no, I'm not okay." She took a big gulp of her drink, drowning the transparent liquid completely. "It's just… two hours ago I was talking to him and now… now he's dead…"

Cuddy's breath caught in her throat.

"Dead?" She asked, still dumbfounded. "What do you mean dead?"

Silvia turned to her best friend 'crap', she thought. "Oh my God, Lise, I'm sorry I thought you knew… George, he was found dead. Here, at Saint Bernard's."

Lisa Cuddy's world came crashing down.

_She'd killed a man._

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><p>Gaaaaaaaaasp. What do you think? Thoughts? Ideas? lemme know!<br>The 13th chapter on the last day of 2012, surely deserves to be reviewed right? _WINK, WINK _

I'll see you next year! 3


	14. Chapter 14

hey there! I come bearing gifts :D yeah, I know it's been a month but my laptop decided to give up on life and committed suicide a few weeks ago so I lost all my fics and had to write this chapter from scratch, my sincere apologies.  
>to make up for it, I wrote some huddy fluffness in this chapter.<br>thank you so much to partypantscuddy for correcting my mistakes and to SissiCuddles (a.k.a author of Celeste that btw if you haven't read yet please reconsider your life choices) for being my white board.

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><p>Cuddy's world came crashing down in a matter of seconds, all she'd worked for, all she had accomplished seemed to have vanished right before her eyes. She felt hopeless, hopeless and lost.<p>

She tried to steady herself, grasping for something to keep her from falling, both literally and metaphorically, she was standing at the edge of an abyss, deep, dark and scary and there was nothing keeping her from slipping into the unknown gloom.

Silvia realized how terrified Cuddy looked; her bright blue eyes were covered in a dense cloud of fear and all the colour had drained from her face, giving her a ghost like pale complexion.

"Hey… it's okay…" - she rushed to her friend's side, leaving her drink forgotten on the counter – "… this place is full of cops. You're safe."

Cuddy could feel the cold fear snake through her menacingly. She was indeed scared but not of some allusion of a murderer, creeping through the shadows, walking amongst them, waiting for his next prey, no, she was scared of herself, she was terrified.

_Could I have done it?_

And her best friend kept assuring her that everything would be alright, assuring her that she would be safe from harm, standing there, holding her hand, completely oblivious of the images rushing through her mind.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw movement, a dark figure was leaning against the door, a worried expression crossing his face just as blue met blue.

He limped across the room as fast as he leg would allow and the closer he got to her, the harder his heart pounded inside his ribcage.

After what seemed like an eternity, he reached her.

"What's wrong?" he asked, worry sticking to his words.

"I..." no words came out of her mouths, only small sobs managed to escape her pursed lips.

"What's wrong?" he asked again, but this time he was talking to the bewildered looking Silvia, hopelessly watching their interaction.

"I just... I told her what happened to George and she just froze. I didn't mean to upset her..." the tone of House's voice was just worrying her even further, usually when he talked to her it was either to mock her or mock other things. That's it. That was their way of communicating, mutual jabbing at each other, and there never had been need of it to be different. But now, the foreign tenor was simply a big question mark in her head.

Silvia made her way out of the room, something House made a mental note to thank her later for, he seldom let people see him so broken so he appreciated her absence.

House turned his attention back to Cuddy, his heart clenching at the view of her sitting there, pale and fragile, grasping for some sanity, silently pleading for help.

"Cuddy..."

She still didn't look at him.

"Cuddy."

Another small sob escaped her lips but her eyes were still focused on the black and white linoleum floor.

"Cuddy!"

Perhaps a little too forcefully, he tried to get her attention once more, the feeling of panic slowly coming to life in the pit of his stomach.

"Lisa... please." In a last attempt to help her, her pleaded for her to look at him with those big grey eyes he so secretly thought to be her best feature.

With a gentle motion, he brought his finger under her chin, turning her face towards him. She still refused to look at him.

Cuddy could look him in the eye, his intense stare would break her, she'd fall apart and everything would be real.

"Lisa, if you're a bird, I'm a bird."

Her stare flew to his tear stained eyes. He remembered. Everything, every fear, every frustration, every regret erupted from her vehemently, she clung to him and cried and he never let her go.

[Flashback]

_Four months ago..._

Seemingly uninterested in the moving pictures in front of her, Cuddy was sitting on the couch going through some reports she'd hadn't been able to finish signing off at PPTH. House was in the kitchen, working on yet another one of his "experiences" in the culinary field, and by experience he meant something he'd just start to get a bit too creative with and end up ruining it in the end, forcing them to order in. Meaning, it was just another normal Friday in the House-Cuddy household.

The credits started rolling at the sound of a very sappy music, telling House the movie was over, from what he got from occasionally glancing at the flat screen, it had been a drama heavy love story in which the protagonists were a rich white girl and a poor bastard that fell in love with her. Typical chick flick.

Cuddy put down her pen and made her way to the kitchen.

"How come you never say anything sweet to me?"

House, who'd been too engrossed deciding with which spice to go with, was caught by surprise when Cuddy walked in, arms crossed under her breasts and a stern look on her face.

"Excuse me?" He asked dumfounded, letting the paprika fall from his hand.

"You heard me." Cuddy walked closer to him. "Why don't you say sweet things to me?"

He blinked twice which she thought was utterly cute but she kept a strict look on her face.

"Have we ever met?" He asked rhetorically. "Where's this coming from?"

She rolled her eyes, slightly turning her face to the left, clenching her jaw. Typical "I will cut you" signal, as House liked to call it.

"In the movie. He told her he was a bird, how come you never told me you were a bird?"

What was scarring him the most was how serious she sounded, she was actually pissed for something about..birds?

"Cuddy, you're scarring me" His mouth was agape, she'd left him speechless, something that never ever happened to him, he always had something to say.

She took a deep breath, resisting the urge to smack his head. She loved the man but sometimes she wanted to beat his ass to death.

Trying again, she said "Haven't you ever watched "The Notebook"? When Allie is saying she's a bird and asks Noah to say his a bird too so they could be birds together he tells her if she was a bird he was a bird too and you never say things like that to me, why?" The words were shooting out of her mouth, with such speed House had a hard time following her train of thought.

"What the hell, Cuddy?!" His voice was slightly higher than usual, but he knew better than to start laughing in her face . "It's a movie, men in real life don't say gay things like that! Wilson might but we all know how deep down inside he's more of a woman than you..." he trailed off.

"House..."

"C'mon, Cuddles, you know me." He decided to let her have her moment of insanity, maybe she'd been working too hard, or inhaled some toxic gas in the hospital or something... "You can't seriously expect me to tell you those overly clichéd romantic lines, I love you but I'm not _that_ desperate."

"Ugh, you're useless."

As the sound of their bedroom door slam echoed through the kitchen, House chuckled to himself...

...PMSing Cuddy was something he didn't wish on his worse enemies.

[End of Flashback]

_Present day..._

"It's okay, I got you..."

Cuddy kept crying in House's arms, clenching her fists in his dress shirt, the feeling of hopelessness still creeping through her.

"House..." She finally managed to say "...George is dead..." She dry swallowed, gathering all her strength to lastly confessing it out loud. "...I think I killed him." Her sentence was cut off by another sob, saying those words out loud brought a new wave of feelings she couldn't deal with.

Her head was bowed down once again, in fear of House's rejection, she couldn't bring herself look at him.

He turned her face to him once again, this time a look of determination clouding his eyes.

"Look at me." He instructed her. "You didn't kill him."

The certainty in his voice was unsettling, House was never one to sugar coat or euphemize anything.

"There is no way you could be sure of that, I pushed him and he fe-"

"I did it."

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><p>I was told that this is getting a tad bit confusing to follow but don't worry, answers will start to be answered in the next chapters but, if you have any suggestions andor comments (good or bad) pls let me know :) 

Leave a review, I need feedback!


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